The FIFA World Cup 2022 is underway with an exciting fixture between the host country Qatar and Ecuador. But we have seen a lot of added time in the final moments of all the games till now. But why?
During Ecuador’s 2-0 win over Qatar, an additional 10 minutes of injury time were added combining both halves. Then, on Monday, 29 minutes were added to England’s 6-2 win over Iran, owing to injuries to goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand and defender Harry Maguire, as well as a lengthy VAR review. The Netherlands’ 2-0 victory over Senegal was extended by 12 minutes and 49 seconds, while the United States’ 1-1 draw with Wales was extended by 14 minutes and 34 seconds.
Why is there so much stoppage time in this FIFA World Cup 2022?
Pierluigi Collina, the legendary referee and chairman of FIFA’s referee’s committee, warned that this was a strong possibility during this international tournament.
He said: “We told everybody to not be surprised if they see the fourth official raising the electronic board with a big number on it, six, seven or eight minutes. If you want more active time, we need to be ready to see this kind of additional time given.”
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“Think of a match with three goals scored. A celebration normally takes one, one and a half minutes, so with three goals scored, you lose five or six minutes.
“What we want to do is accurately calculate the added time at the end of each half.
“It can be the fourth official to do that, we were successful in Russia [2018] and we expect the same in Qatar.
“I am not talking about VAR intervention, this is something which is different and calculated by the Video Assistant Referee in a very precise way.”
Is it fair to add such long stoppage times?
Well, there have been a lot of comments regarding time-wasting in football, particularly in recent years, and the current rules in Qatar ensure that there is more time with the ball in play. It’s reasonable to expect a lot more time added on at the end of games throughout the tournament. Goal celebrations, video assistant referee decisions, penalties, cards, and players purposefully delaying the game to wind down the clock are all reasons for the extra time.
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