The controversial proposal to give referees blue cards to use in sin-bin trials is likely to be dropped on Saturday at a meeting of football’s lawmakers in Loch Lomond.
FIFA and UEFA led a backlash behind the scenes that was taken up publicly by Premier League managers including Jurgen Klopp and Ange Postecoglou, with the International FA Board to set out their plans following their annual Board meeting.
FIFA have four seats on the eight-person IFAB Board and their opposition appears to have killed off the idea for now.
Sin-bin trials have been taking place in junior and amateur matches in England and Wales for dissent, but without a different coloured card being introduced to complement the use of yellow and red cards.
The controversial plan to give referees blue cards to use in sin-bin trials is likely to be dropped
FIFA, UEFA and several Premier League managers had all voiced their opposition to the move
IFAB will also discuss extending these trials into the professional game, although they are unlikely to be implemented at elite levels at this stage.
Trialling sin-bins in professional youth tournaments is viewed as the most likely outcome at this stage.
IFAB will also discuss giving referees the power to stop matches for official “cooling-off periods” for several minutes following confrontations between players, or if tempers are boiling over.
No trials have taken place yet, but the idea would be for players to be split by match officials into different areas, such as their separate penalty areas.
Other proposals to be discussed on Saturday include trialling a new protocol where only captains can approach match officials, similar to the convention in rugby.
