FIFA president Gianni Infantino sparked outrage with his recent plan—later abandoned—to sell World Cup rights to private investors. UEFA said the plan “crosses a line,” and Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham said it would mean FIFA has “sold out.” But this is not the first time a radical change to football has been proposed and then shelved.
Offside ban
As FIFA's technical development director, Marco van Basten proposed scrapping the offside rule in 2017, arguing it would make the game more attacking and “attractive.” A match without offside was played between Dutch clubs Ajax and AZ '67 in 1968, ending 2-1. However, changes have been resisted over fears of goal-hanging and teams packing the box with defenders.
Penalty run-ups
Another of Van Basten's ideas was for penalty kicks to be replaced by a one-on-one with the goalkeeper, starting 25 meters out with eight seconds to score. A similar concept, borrowed from ice hockey, was tried in Major League Soccer in the 1990s but was dropped due to collisions and injuries.
Kick-ins
Early football codes included kick-ins instead of throw-ins. FIFA's Chief of Global Football Development, Arsene Wenger, has revived the idea, noting that throw-ins often result in loss of possession. The concept was trialed in the Isthmian League in the 1990s, but teams tended to use them for long balls into the box.
Bigger goals
Standard goal dimensions—8 feet high and 24 feet wide—were set in 1875. Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter faced purist opposition when he suggested bigger goals in 1996. In 2024, former Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon said changes may be needed because goalkeepers have grown physically larger. No plan to change goals is in place.
Orange and blue cards
In 2014, former FIFA executive Jérôme Champagne proposed orange cards as a sin-bin option alongside yellow and red. Nothing came of it. Similar plans for a blue card were ruled out for elite football in 2024.
European Super League
In 2021, plans for a breakaway European Super League involving 20 top clubs, including six from the Premier League, collapsed after a public backlash. British clubs quickly withdrew after protests, with Arsenal among those admitting they had “made a mistake” in a letter to fans.
British Cup
In 1902, a British League Cup was held to raise funds for victims of the Ibrox Stadium disaster, featuring the winners and runners-up of the Scottish and English Football Leagues. Proposals in the 21st century for a cup involving clubs from across the home nations have come to nothing.
