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Stay updated on competition rule and format changes that could impact your services

By: Alex Roberts

Thanks for your interest.

These resources give early visibility of competitions introducing new rules which may have a material impact on their trading.

WHICH COMPETITIONS CURRENTLY USE VAR?

⚠️ Use the filter / sort functionality to see new competitions implementing VAR

Updates from March 2026, you may have missed:

  • EFL Championship play-offs to expand from four teams to six from 2026–27

    • EFL clubs have approved a change to expand the Championship play-offs from four teams to six starting from the 2026–27 season.

    • Under the new format, the teams finishing third and fourth will go straight to the semi-finals, while the teams finishing fifth to eighth will first play one-off eliminators for the remaining semi-final places.

Updates from February 2026, you may have missed:

  • IFAB approves wide football law changes for the 2026 World Cup and all competitions from July 1

    • The International Football Association Board (IFAB) has ratified a package of law changes designed to speed up play and expand VAR’s remit, set to be implemented at the 2026 FIFA World Cup and enter the Laws of the Game from 1 July 2026.

    • Key confirmed changes include:

      • Expanded VAR powers:  VARs can review incorrect second yellow cards leading to red cards, mistaken identity, and wrongly awarded corner kicks where the review can be completed immediately.

      • Countdown enforcement on restarts: referees can start a five-second countdown for throw-ins and goal kicks; failure to restart results in opposition advantages (e.g., possession or corner).

      • Timing limits on substitutions: substituted players must leave the field within 10 seconds or the replacement must wait until the next stoppage.

      • Injury treatment exit rule: players assessed or causing stoppages must leave play and stay off for one minute after play restarts.

    • These measures will apply at the World Cup in June 2026 and across all competitions from July 1 under the updated Laws of the Game.

  • English club rugby to abolish automatic promotion and relegation from 2026–27
    • The Rugby Football Union (RFU) Council has approved the end of automatic promotion and relegation between the top-flight PREM Rugby (formerly Premiership) and Champ Rugby from the 2026–27 season, replacing it with a criteria-based expansion and demotion model for league entry and exit.
    • Under the new structure, the top division will stay at 10 clubs initially and is planned to expand to 12 teams by the 2029–30 season, with admission based on competitive, financial and infrastructure criteria rather than automatic on-field results.

  • MLB to introduce Automated Ball-Strike (ABS) challenge system for 2026 season

    • Major League Baseball will implement the Automated Ball-Strike (ABS) Challenge System for the 2026 season, allowing batters, pitchers and catchers to challenge ball/strike calls by tapping their helmet or cap, with teams starting with two challenges and retaining them if successful.

    • The system is approved to be used in regular season, spring training and postseason games, marking a significant expansion of pitch-call review in the sport.

Updates from January 2026, you may have missed:

  • IFAB to widen VAR reviews to include second yellow cards and corner decisions
    • Football’s law-making body has backed plans to allow VAR to intervene on second yellow cards (leading to a red) and on the awarding of corner kicks — decisions previously outside VAR’s remit — provided checks are quick and don’t delay play.
  • IFAB to trial five refereeing and VAR changes at the 2026 FIFA World Cup

    • IFAB has approved a package of refereeing trials for use at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, aimed at reducing time-wasting and widening VAR’s scope. The trials include:

      • Countdown limits on restarts (goal-kicks and throw-ins), with possession switching if play does not resume in time.

      • Substituted players required to leave the pitch promptly, with delays penalised by holding back the incoming substitute.

      • Mandatory minimum absence for players receiving on-field treatment, with the duration to be confirmed.

      • VAR permitted to review corner-kick awards.

      • VAR allowed to overturn incorrect second yellow cards, but not to recommend a second yellow where none was given.

Updates from December 2025, you may have missed:

  • CAF to move AFCON to a four-year cycle and introduce an African Nations League
    • CAF has announced that the Africa Cup of Nations will shift from a biennial tournament to once every four years from 2028, alongside plans to launch an African Nations League to run in FIFA international windows.
    • The new African Nations League would involve all 54 member associations on the continent, would take place every year in designated FIFA international breaks across September, October and November. The continent will be regionally divided into four parts, with six countries in the North African zone, and 16 teams in each of the other three regional divisions.
  • FAI confirms 15 founding clubs for new National League third tier

    • The Football Association of Ireland has confirmed the 15 clubs that will form the new FAI National League, a national men’s third tier launching with a short inaugural season in Autumn 2026.

    • The league will initially operate in regionalised conferences, before moving to a full national format, with promotion to the League of Ireland First Division planned from the 2027 season, subject to club licensing and infrastructure requirements.

  • Uruguay launches new Copa de la Liga AUF knockout cup competition
    • The Copa de la Liga AUF has been introduced as a new domestic cup in Uruguay, played 11–25 January 2026 before the start of the 2026 Liga AUF Uruguaya, featuring all 16 top-flight clubs.
    • The tournament uses a single-elimination format (round of 16 → quarter-finals → semi-final → final), with teams seeded based on the previous season’s standings and promoted sides at the lowest seeds. Ties level after 90 minutes go straight to penalties,
    • If the tournament has the same two finalists as the Supercopa (Super Cup) – the final will count for both titles.

Updates from June 2025, you may have missed:

  • EFL adds extra preliminary round for the 2025/26 Carabao Cup to accommodate record number of English teams participating in Europe

    • Why it’s happening:
      A record nine Premier League clubs have qualified for European competitions next season. Since those teams don’t enter the Carabao Cup until Round Three, the EFL is introducing a preliminary round to reduce the number of teams in Rounds One and Two and avoid fixture congestion

    • Who’s playing:
      Barnet and Oldham Athletic (just promoted to League Two) will join Accrington Stanley and Newport County (the lowest-ranked non-relegated League Two teams) in this early qualifier. Winners go into Round One.

Updates from March 2025, you may have missed:

  • IFAB introduces new eight-second rule to reduce time-wasting by goalkeepers for 2025/26 season
    • Per the new rule, a corner kick will be awarded to the opposing team if a goalkeeper holds the ball for longer than eight seconds.
    • Previously, the same rule awarded an indirect free kick if a goalkeeper held on to the ball for more than six seconds.
    • Trading team impact: Operator’s pricing models, in-play market uptime, player models, player markets and stoppage time added.

Updates from February 2025, you may have missed:

Updates from January 2025, you may have missed:

    • Norwegian football clubs vote to drop VAR – could become first country in Europe to drop technology
      • The 32 clubs in Norsk Toppfotball (NTF), which represents Norway’s top two football divisions, have voted to drop VAR. A final decision will be made by Norway’s football parliament—the country’s highest football authority—at its meeting on March 1 and 2. If approved, Norway would become the first European country to scrap VAR.
    • The 2025 Six Nations Championship to use 20-minute red cards for the first time
      • What’s New: A red-carded player can be replaced after 20 minutes in the 2025 Six Nations Championship.
      • Old Rule: Teams previously played with one fewer player for the rest of the match after a red card.
      • Why the Change: Aims to balance fairness and safety, keeping matches competitive while penalising dangerous play.
      • Exceptions: Permanent red cards still apply for serious or deliberate dangerous action.

        Updates from May 2024, you may have missed:

        Updates from April 2024, you may have missed:

        Updates from October 2023, you may have missed:

Updates from July 2023, you may have missed:

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