In an incredible and unprecedented move, FIFA wants to change the rules mid-tournament, with the International FA Board set to make the final decision
19:13, 23 Jun 2026
Arsenal players during the penalty shoot-out defeat to PSG in the Champions League final
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Arsenal players during the penalty shoot-out defeat to PSG in the Champions League final(Image: (Nicolò Campo/LightRocket via Getty Images))
Arsenal were beaten on penalties by Paris Saint-Germain in the final of the Champions League - but a change of the law to do with shoot-outs could be on the way. That is because FIFA are set to bring in a law change on penalty shoot-outs - in time for the World Cup knock-out stages.
The Times report the governing body wants to change the rules mid-tournament so that a team either chooses to take the first spot kick or takes the penalties in front of their own fans. FIFA officials have held talks with the International FA Board (IFAB), football’s law-making body, about bringing in a change for this tournament despite it already being underway.
IFAB must make a decision on if the changes are to be introduced and used throughout the tournament before the first knockout match on Sunday night.
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The current laws of the game state that there are two coin tosses at a penalty shoot-out. The first is to decide who takes the first kick and then another to choose the end.
However, FIFA now wants to change the law so there is only one coin toss, with the winner having the first choice and the loser the second.
They believe the move would be a fairer way to organise shoot-outs rather than handing two advantages to one team.
Arsenal lost both coin tosses in the Champions League final against PSG, placing them at a double disadvantage heading into the shootout.
Arsenal and PSG players and staff huddle before the Champions League final penalty shoot-out
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Arsenal and PSG players and staff huddle before the Champions League final penalty shoot-out (Image: (Catherine Ivill - AMA/Getty Images))
While former Arsenal chairman David Dein unveiled plans back in 2023 to have penalty shootouts taken at both ends.
Dein, who formerly sat on the FIFA and UEFA competitions committees, believed it was 'unfair' for players to take their spot kicks in front of opposition supporters.
“The more I watched shootouts, the more I felt it was unfair on the team who have to take their kicks in front of the opposing fans,' he said in his book Calling the Shots: How to Win in Football and Life by David Dein.
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Before he added: "I'm not asking the referee to go up and down. There's the referee, the fourth official, and two assistants and in major finals, an assistant referee.
“It's not rocket science having two officiating at either end and one in the centre circle. Invariably there are 32 cameras at a major final, so the coverage will be the same.
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“My plan is so simple I don't understand why it's never been done. I keep hearing the word 'tradition' and, 'it's always been done like this'. Well, 100 years ago buses were drawn by horses and that was 'tradition'. This is progress.”
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