Premier League Referees’ Committee Makes Crucial Decision to Increase Penalty Kicks

The Premier League is preparing for a season that could see a significant increase in the number of penalty kicks awarded, with referees taking a stricter approach to tackles and illegal tackles in the penalty area, a move aimed at curbing a phenomenon that has drawn increasing criticism in recent seasons.

Professional Referees’ Association chairman Howard Webb told reporters on Thursday that a recent survey revealed a “very high” number of clear tackles going unpunished, indicating that referees are now required to deal more firmly with these cases.

“I would expect, if we were sitting around this table this time next year, there would be more penalties awarded for these offenses than last season. But we’re not looking for excessive changes, because that’s difficult to sustain for long periods,” he said.

Webb indicated that the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) technology will play an effective role in intervening in “non-football” situations, such as a player pulling an opponent to the ground, even if they are not handling the ball. However, he explained that there are “grey areas” in which the referee will still have the final say, such as minor touches or mutual pulls that do not affect the flow of play or the player’s ability to control the ball.

He added, “When there are no considerations to support the referee’s decision, we expect VAR to intervene as well.”

Webb cited an incident from last season when Nottingham Forest were awarded a confirmed penalty after a VAR review, following a pull on Forest captain Morgan Gibbs-White during a 7-0 win over Brighton. The incident was described by the Premier League as “a sustained pull without an attempt to play the ball.”

The chairman of the referees’ committee emphasized that this campaign will not be temporary. “It’s not supposed to be a two-week or six-week campaign and then forget about it. If we start too quickly, we’ll quickly stop under pressure. We have to be consistent and maintain credibility.”

The new Premier League season kicked off on Friday evening, when Liverpool hosted Bournemouth at Anfield, amid anticipation of whether these new measures will have an early impact on match results.