I read with relief that Arsene Wenger, long-time Arsenal manager and now Chief of International Football Development at FIFA, had proposed changing the offside rule.
He is a man who understands the game better than almost anyone, and his backing of this rule change could put an end to some of the ludicrous decisions that have led to goals being disallowed in recent seasons.
Especially since VAR came in.
This move began back in 2021, so it’s not exactly new. However, it is gathering pace. A lot of research and studies have been done since then, with trials showing that the number of offside calls per came could be halved from 4 to 2 on average.
This would produce more goals, create more offensive play, and allow fans to enjoy more of a spectacle when they watch a game.
We have all experienced the frustration of a perfectly good goal being disallowed to a player’s right knee being offside or something equally ridiculous. This change could put a stop to that, and it can’t come quickly enough for me.
Origins of the Offside Rule: Why it was Introduced
The offside rule has been around since 1863, so it’s about as old as the modern game itself.
However, it was a very different rule back then and has gone through many many changes over the years, especially in recent history.
It’s essentially there to stop players camping in the opposition’s half, receiving a long ball, and having a clear run on goal. By dictating that the attacking player must have a defender between them and the last defender (the keeper in 99.9% of cases), teams are forced to use tactics and skill to move the ball forward and create goal scoring opportunities. It’s much more interesting to watch and fairer to play.
- 1863: Players were offside if they were in front of the ball. Like rugby really.
- 1866: FA rules state a player is offside unless there are at least 3 opponents between the them and the opponent’s goal line when the ball is passed. This was referred to as the “three-player rule.”
- 1907: The rule is changed so players cannot be offside in their own half.
- 1925: To increase goal scoring the “three-player rule” was changed to a “two-player rule”. So now only two defenders needed to be between the attacker and the opponents goal when the ball was kicked.
- 1990: To clarify the rule, IFAB stated that if a player was level with the second to last defender they would be classed as onside.
- 1995: A subtle change occurred to the wording of the rules, meanings that players in an offside position had to be “gaining an advantage by being in that position”, not just “seeking to gain an advantage”. So a player who was in an offside position but not interfering with play would not be counted.
- 2003: Further clarification on the above meant a player had to be actively interfering in play. So passive players were off the hook.
- 2005: The parts of the body rule came in. This stated that when determining an offside, the part of the body closest to the opposing team’s goal would count. It excluded hands and arms though, as these could not be used to handle the ball so added no benefit.
- 2018: VAR started to be roll out, allowing offside decisions to be made based on the tiniest of margins.
You can see the way the rule was brought in for a good reason, adapted to make it more effective, and then they started to nit pick. When technology improved so much that they could instantly see multiple angles of the situation with virtual lines drawn across screens to measure millimetres, things got out of hand.
VAR Nit Picking
When a player is technically offside by a few centimetres, do they really hold any advantage?
Of course not. They are level with the defender for all intents and purposes, and as the 1990 rule clarification states, they should therefore be classed as onside.
The defender still has to defend, the attacker still has to beat the defender, there is no poaching going on, so it shouldn’t be classed as offside.
Just because we have technology like VAR to help us make difficult decisions, it doesn’t mean it should be used for this level of detail.
If a match official is not able to judge an offside call with their eyes, it probably isn’t offering any unfair advantage to the attacking team. It’s true that before VAR there were more incorrect decisions, but if those decisions are being based on the difference of a few blades of grass, the statistics don’t really stand up to scrutiny.
For me, it’s about intent.
If a player is trying to deliberately get a head start by positioning themselves offside that’s not on. If they did try to do this it would be fariyl obvious though, because they would need to be clearly ahead of the defender for it to be worthwhile. However, if a player clearly believes they are level with the second to last defender, but their thigh just happens to be half an inch ahead of the man marking them, that player is clearly not trying to cheat.
Using VAR to nit pick and penalise them on a technicality doesn’t make any sense and it ruins countless exciting moments for players and fans alike.
How the New Rule Would Work
If and when the new rule is implemented, it would be much more forgiving to the attacking player.
The finer details would need to be ironed out, but current discussions suggest that the attacker’s whole body must be ahead of the defending player for the offside decision to be given.
In other words there must be daylight between the attacker and the defender. If one part of their body with which they can handle the ball is in line with the defender, they would not be classed as offside.
VAR and other tech would still be used to determine this of course and there would still be close calls, but it wouldn’t hinder the game like it does with the current setup.
It would impact tactics more broadly too.
For example a team playing with a high defensive line would have to rethink or risk getting caught on the counter. Defenders aren’t stupid. They know that with things how they currently are they have a good chance of marginal offside calls saving their bacon so long as their positioning is alright.
This rule change would make that attitude much riskier.
It is still being trialled, mainly among under 18 leagues, with IFAB getting regular updates and stats on the impact. We might not see it implemented in top flight football for a while, but it does seem to have a lot of support from the right people.
It’s an eminently sensible suggestion in my book, and I will be delighted if and when it comes in. The sooner the better!