FIFA to trial concussion substitutes at Club World Cup

FIFA will trial concussion substitutes at next month’s Club World Cup in Qatar, soccer’s world governing body said on Friday.

The decision comes after the game’s rule-making body IFAB gave the go-ahead to additional trials last month.

The trial at the Club World Cup, which will be held from Feb. 1-11, will allow one permanent concussion replacement in cases of head injury, regardless of the number of substitutions a team has made already.

England’s Premier League are hoping to introduce concussion substitutes later this month, while FIFA is also ready to trial the system at this year’s Olympic Games.

FIFA said teams participating in the Club World Cup are also permitted to make up to five substitutions per game rather than three — a rule brought in to protect player welfare amid COVID-19 related fixture congestion.

However, teams will only have three opportunities to make changes during the game and also at halftime.