The Swiss Football League (SFL) is introducing two new rules for the 2024/25 season, which starts in a few days' time. As at the European Championship, in future only the captains will be allowed to discuss matters with the referee. The other rule concerns handball on the goal line.
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- The new Challenge League season starts on Friday and the Super League on Saturday.
- The teams will have to get used to two new rules. As at the European Championship, in future only the captains will be allowed to discuss matters with the referee. This should make pack formation a thing of the past.
- The second rule adjustment concerns handball on the goal line.
- blue Sport shows all Super League and Challenge League matches live.
From the start of the Swiss Football League season next weekend, only the team captains will be allowed to communicate with the referees after controversial decisions. The SFL, which is responsible for the Super League and Challenge League, announced the introduction of the rule, which was successfully applied at the European Championship in Germany, on Monday.
"We saw at the EURO that this rule has a positive influence on both the behavior of the players and the flow of the game and makes the referees' work easier," said Silvano Lombardo, Chief Sports & Competition Officer of the SFL. "That's why we want to introduce this rule in our championships to promote mutual respect. This can also have a positive effect on the lower leagues."
In fact, there were hardly any pack formations to be seen at the European Championship. Dani Wermelinger, Head of Top Referees at the Swiss Football Association, emphasizes that there is no fundamental problem in Switzerland and that there is only a need for action in certain areas: "The focus will be on cooling down heated situations through good communication and preventing a flood of warnings with a healthy dose of moderation."
It was also announced that an unintentional but nevertheless punishable handball in connection with an obvious goalscoring opportunity will no longer be punished with a red card, but with a caution.
