FIFA slammed for introducing 'severe' new World Cup rule

News

Cameron Smith | Digital Content Producer

Accredited sports journalist covering football since 2020

Former FIFA referee Keith Hackett has taken aim at a new officiating rule after Miguel Almiron was sent off for covering his mouth during Paraguay’s 1-0 win over Turkey last week.

After a VAR review on Saturday, Almiron became the first player in World Cup history to be shown a red card for covering their mouth in a confrontational manner.

Current ETV

Miguel Almirón

F (R), M (RL)

Atlanta Utd

Miguel Almirón

F (R), M (RL)

Atlanta Utd

€18.1M

ETV Range

€16.3M - €19.9M

View full profile

The rule was brought into place by FIFA ahead of the tournament due to an incident involving Gianluca Prestianni and Vinicius Junior during a Champions League clash between Benfica and Real Madrid last season, with football’s governing body eager to stop players aiming abuse at opponents while covering their mouth.

By introducing a rule whereby a player will be sent off for this offence, FIFA hopes to eliminate racist or homophobic comments, in addition to any other form of abuse.

As a result of his decision to cover his mouth when speaking to Turkey’s Mert Muldur in a confrontational manner, Almiron was sent his marching orders by referee Ivan Arcides Barton Cisneros after a VAR review. However, Hackett, a former PGMOL chief and FIFA referee, isn’t a fan of the new rule that has been introduced for the World Cup.

Ex-FIFA referee disagrees with new World Cup rule

“I think it's severe. Football players are creatures of habit and they need time to be able to understand them and get used to playing under them,” Hackett told Football Insider.

“I suspect this hand over the mouth rule, while you and I were aware of it because of our media connections and reading and all research that we do, a lot of the general public were not aware.

“And I suspect, following through, there's a percentage of players, like Almiron, who were not aware of this law change.

“They've got into the habit, haven't they? Not every comment behind the hand of a player is going to break the rule of a racist remark.”