Overview
- UEFA informed its member associations on Thursday that covering the mouth during on-field confrontations in Champions League, Europa League and Conference League matches will not trigger an automatic red card.
- Referees are instructed to use their judgement and may issue a yellow card for mouth-covering if they judge it to be an attempt to hide communication as unsporting behaviour.
- Disciplinary bodies can still open investigations after matches, meaning players could face sanctions later even when no red card is shown on the pitch.
- UEFA will broaden VAR powers for its club competitions to allow video review of incorrectly awarded corners, aligning some replay authority with World Cup practice but stopping short of the World Cup’s strict in-game expulsions.
- The change responds to a high-profile Champions League episode involving Gianluca Prestianni and Vinícius Júnior and follows IFAB’s World Cup rule that led to two red cards, highlighting a split between global law changes and UEFA’s tailored enforcement.