Blue card trial over before it’s started?! FIFA shuts down talk of revolutionary new colour being used at ‘elite level’

FIFA has denied that blue cards will be introduced to major competitions next season, despite a report claiming a trial will be announced this week.

WHAT HAPPENED?
A report from The Telegraph claimed that the International Football Association Board (IFAB) will announce that blue cards will be introduced to the game as soon as next season. While the report says they will not be in used in top-tier competitions, they could be given a run out in the likes of the FA Cup and League Cup should the Football Association (FA) volunteer the tournaments as part of the trial.

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WHAT FIFA SAID
However, FIFA has denied that blue cards will not be used in top competitions, saying in a statement later on Thursday: "FIFA wishes to clarify that reports of the so-called 'blue card' at elite levels of football are incorrect and premature. Any such trials, if implemented, should be limited to testing in a responsible manner at lower levels, a position that FIFA intends to reiterate when this agenda item is discussed at the IFAB AGM on 1 March."
THE BIGGER PICTURE
The trial will allow referees to show blue cards for dissent and fouls intended to stop promising attacks and will see a player banished from the field for 10 minutes. Blue cards have already been introduced at grassroots level in some areas and appear set to come into the professional game soon as part of a wider 'sin-bin' regulation.

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WHAT NEXT?
FIFA will discuss the introduction of a blue card trial at the annual general meeting next month. UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin has already spoken out against the idea, claiming "it’s not football anymore."

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