Blue cards and sin bins set to be introduced into professional football - reports

Football’s lawmakers are reportedly on the brink of a shakeup of the game that would see sin bins introduced.

The International Football Association Board [IFAB] has been working on plans for changes to the game, and Sky Sports is among the news outlets reporting that its plans will be unveiled on Friday.

According to the report, officials will carry blue cards which if brandished would result in a spell of 10 minutes in the sin bin.

The report states that offences such as dissent and cynical fouls would see players sent to the sin bin.

It is expected that IFAB will give the green light for the trials at its annual meeting in March.

IFAB has been looking at ways of improving player behaviour, while also seeking to find a balance for incidents that do not match the threshold for a red card but warrant more than a yellow card.

Should the blue card be introduced, it would be the first change to on-field punishments since red and yellow cards were introduced at the 1970 World Cup.

UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin said last month that he was opposed to the introduction of sin bins, but European football’s governing body could be forced to have them in its competitions should they be added to the laws of the game.

The Times is reporting that the Football Association is considering trialling sin bins in next season’s FA Cup and Women’s FA Cup.

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