Collina explains upcoming referee and VAR changes: ‘The situation is very different’

Legendary former referee Pierluigi Collina has had his say on a number of upcoming VAR and refereeing changes that are expected to come into effect in time for the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America: ‘The goal is to eliminate timewasting as much as possible’. 

Collina explains upcoming VAR and refereeing changes

Collina is a member of the UEFA Referees Committee and is Chair of the FIFA Referees Committee. He was in attendance for the annual general meeting of the International Football Association Board (IFAB) in Wales on Saturday. 

The IFAB is responsible for overseeing and determining the laws of the game. Its members met in Wales on Saturday to discuss and decide upon a number of changes, including new measures to combat timewasting and allowing VAR to intervene on second yellow card decisions instead of just for straight red card incidents. 

“The goal is to eliminate, or to eliminate as much as possible, timewasting that hinders the spectacle of the game,” Collina told La Gazzetta dello Sport about the upcoming changes that were decided upon on Saturday. 

“Last year we introduced the ‘eight second rule’ for goalkeepers, which has been a great success. There have been very few cases where a corner has been granted. The deterrent has worked.

“Considering the amount of time that is lost through so many goal-kicks and free-kicks, we thought we needed to find a solution.” 

Another rule that will be introduced at the FIFA World Cup is a 10-second limit for players to leave the field after a substitution has been called. If players fail to leave the pitch within the allocated 10 seconds, the replacement substitute will not be permitted to enter until the next stoppage in play, or until one minute of action has passed. 

“We already did something, making substitutes leave the pitch from the nearest point. The time limit is a more effective deterrent than the yellow card, which is sometimes seen as some sort of ‘deal’,” Collina said. ”The results in recent years in MLS show that this measure works,” he added. 

Importantly, VAR will now be able to intervene on second yellow card decisions, which had not previously been the case. 

Just two weeks ago in Serie A, Pierre Kalulu was incorrectly sent off for a second bookable offence in one of the biggest matches of the season, the Derby d’Italia between Inter and Juventus, but the referee Federico La Penna was unable to refer the incident for review. This will no longer be the case as it was not a straight red card incident. 

Some might argue that it should always have been the case that VAR is able to intervene on second yellow card offences and not just for straight red card incidents. 

“When we decided on the VAR trial in 2016, the technology was very different,” Collina explained. “The protocol was written from scratch and took inspiration from other sports, such as rugby, and video officials had no prior experience. Today, the situation is very different. 

“We’ve been discussing it for a few years and unfortunately until now, some had not considered it to be a priority, which is a shame.” 

VAR will now also be able to review corner kick decisions, which had not previously been the case. 

“A corner is a resumption of play that always takes a certain amount of time,” Collina said. “Usually you have to wait until the centre-backs go up and the kicker often has to cross the length of the pitch. In that time, it could be the case that by simply looking at an image, you realise the decision was wrong. 

“Does it make sense to let the corner go and hope that a goal isn’t scored? It’s much better to correct the initial decision and postpone it.”