Football’s lawmakers have approved trials for concussion substitutes from January for any league that wants them.
The new rule means permanent substitutions can be made if a player suffers a head injury, even if all replacements have already been used.
To avoid potential abuse of the rule, opposition teams will also be able to make a change at the same time.
The International Football Association Board (Ifab) also confirmed an extension to the five-substitute rule.
Ifab originally allowed teams to make five substitutions to help with the congested schedule after football was halted by the coronavirus pandemic.
The extension, announced after a meeting on Wednesday, applies to domestic competitions ending by 31 December 2021 and for international competitions ending by 31 July 2022.
The Football Association said it welcomed the approval of an “additional permanent head injury substitute” and would implement the trials “at the earliest practical opportunity” this season in the FA Cup, Women’s FA Cup, the Women’s Super League and Women’s Championship.
The Premier League is also thought to be in favour of the new law but any change to protocol in the top flight is subject to a vote by clubs, who meet on Thursday.
Concussion substitutes were set to be introduced at the football competitions of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics before the Games were postponed until 2021 because of coronavirus.
The ability to gather a more accurate diagnosis of head injuries has been in the spotlight after several members of England’s 1966 World Cup-winning team were diagnosed with dementia.
Nobby Stiles and Jack Charlton, who both died earlier this year, had dementia, while Sir Bobby Charlton’s family recently revealed he had been diagnosed with the disease.
Former Tottenham defender Jan Vertonghen also recently explained how he had felt the effects of a concussion he sustained playing for Spurs for the following nine months.
Brain injury charity Headway says that additional permanent substitutes, rather than temporary replacements as seen in rugby union, may mean that very little changes.
Headway chief executive Peter McCabe said: “Rather than celebrating this development, we’re left to question what difference this will actually make.
“The key questions are, how will players be assessed for suspected concussion, and how will decisions be made about whether they should be permanently removed?
“If decisions continue to be made in the same way, it is very hard to see how player welfare will be improved.”
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