Time-wasting crackdown could mean equivalent of three extra games – FIFPRO study

On average 11.6 minutes of stoppage time were played at matches in Qatar

New guidelines to more accurately calculate stoppage time could add the equivalent of three extra games to a player’s seasonal workload, according to FIFPRO (Martin Rickett/PA)

A clampdown on time-wasting could mean players being involved in the equivalent of up to three extra matches per season, according to a new report from world players’ union FIFPRO.

The sport’s world governing body FIFA ordered referees to more accurately calculate the length of stoppages during last year’s World Cup in Qatar, focusing on goal celebrations as well as injuries, VAR checks and substitutions.