The first four FIFA World Cup Qatar World Cup games received an additional 64 minutes of play time due to new rules.
FIFA has added an average of eight minutes per half in order to maximise playing time and reduce timewasting. The new initiative was launched by legendary official Pierluigi Collina, who is now the chairman of FIFA's referees committee.
England's victory over Iran lasted more than two hours thanks to an incredible 27 minutes of added time. This was due to a horrific head injury to Iran goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand in the first half, as well as knocks to Harry Kane and Harry Maguire in the second half.
The eight goals added minutes to England's victory, as did the 11 substitutions. Nonetheless, the fourth official surprised Three Lions fans by indicating 10 minutes of extra time at the end of the second half. At the time, the score was 6-1.
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The times of substitutions, penalties, celebrations, medical treatment, and, of course, VAR must be compensated
"We want to avoid matches at 42, 43, 44 minutes from effective time," Collina insisted, according to France Info. "As a result, the times of substitutions, penalties, celebrations, medical treatment, and, of course, VAR must be compensated."
Collina's attempt to limit timewasting will please fans who feel let down by a lack of action. In August 2017, for example, a Premier League match between Burnley and West Brom lasted only 47 minutes and 40 seconds.
Goals are being scored later than ever before thanks to FIFA's initiative
Goals are being scored later than ever before thanks to FIFA's initiative. Davy Klaassen's goal in the Netherlands' 2-0 win over Senegal came in the 99th minute, while Iran's Mehdi Taremi's penalty against England came in the 103rd.
Those two are the most recent World Cup goals scored since Opta's records began in 1966. (not including goals scored in extra-time, of course). Before the tournament, World Cup referee Danny Makkelie warned that the halves would be longer.
"You can definitely expect longer halves," he said, according to The Sun. "This is one of the topics we discussed. It will not be surprising to see six, seven, or eight minutes added to the game. We did this in Russia, and everyone was pleased."
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