English football to trial rule removing outfield player after goalkeeper treatment to end tactical stoppages
From August 1, English football will test a new system that forces a team to remove an outfield player for one minute whenever a goalkeeper receives on-pitch treatment, aiming to eliminate the tactical timeout that has frustrated fans and managers.
The growing irritation of fake goalkeeper injuries
Goalkeepers calling the physio on to the pitch despite no obvious contact has become a familiar sight in English football. Last season was littered with examples of keepers going down at tense moments, allowing team-mates to rush to the touchline for tactical instructions or simply to kill the opposition's momentum. Brighton and Hove Albion manager Fabian Hurzeler was vocal after Arsenal's David Raya received treatment three times while holding a 1-0 lead in a crucial Premier League title-race fixture.
In general, the Premier League needs to find a rule because that's not for football what Arsenal did there.
Leeds United's Daniel Farke also accused Manchester City goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma of feigning injury to "bend the rules" and break up play. The International Football Association Board (IFAB) opted not to change the law but invited leagues to propose trials.
How the new trial works
Under the experiment, if a referee allows a physio onto the field to treat a goalkeeper, the team's coach must immediately nominate an outfield player to leave the pitch. That player stays off for a minimum of one minute after play restarts. Should the coach fail to name a player within 10 seconds, the captain must spend the minute on the touchline instead. The aim, according to a joint statement from the Football Association, Premier League, EFL, Women's Super League and National League, is to "ensure genuine injuries continue to receive appropriate medical attention, while removing any potential sporting advantage associated with stoppages." The trial carries three exceptions: when a free-kick is awarded for a foul on the keeper and treatment is needed straight away; when the keeper and an outfield player collide and both require care; and when the keeper is bleeding.
When the trial starts and related time-wasting rules
Pending IFAB clearance, the new system will debut in the Carabao Cup preliminary round match between Tranmere Rovers and Rochdale on Saturday, 1 August 2026, and run throughout the 2026-27 domestic season. The trial sits alongside other anti-delay measures. Last season's eight-second rule, which punished goalkeepers for holding the ball too long with a corner to the opposition, was judged a success. Now a five-second countdown will be used by officials for throw-ins and goal-kicks, and players have 10 seconds to leave the pitch when substituted, both taking effect from the same Carabao Cup date.
A necessary risk and what was rejected
The New York Times noted that the trial is not without hazard: a genuinely injured goalkeeper on a side already reduced to 10 men might avoid treatment to prevent his team dropping to nine at a set-piece. Still, the feeling across the governing bodies is that the risk is on the shoulders of those who exploited the loophole. Alternative ideas were considered but discarded, including ordering all outfield players to gather in the centre circle during goalkeeper treatment, which risked turning referees into "sheepdogs," or merely preventing coaches from addressing players during the stoppage, which failed to stop the underlying problem of momentum-killing.
