By Andrew Warshaw
September 24 – Tighter controls over suspected cases of concussion are likely to be approved by FIFA under new proposals being presented to this week’s executive committee meeting in Zurich.
Referees will be able to stop games for three minutes to allow the team doctor to carry out an on-pitch assessment and only when he is satisfied can the player continue.
Concussion has become a growing concern in football with several high-profile examples – notably Uruguay’s Alvaro Pereira and Germany’s Christoph Kramer at the World Cup – of players carrying on despite suffering head injuries.
In the World Cup final, Germany midfielder Kramer played on for 14 minutes against Argentina before being substituted when clearly disorientated. FIFA’s lack of formal rules was also highlighted when Pereira ignored his team doctor’s advice to be substituted and staggered on after being accidentally knocked out cold against England.
The proposals have been put forward by Fifa’s medical committee and a Fifa statement said: “The incidents at the World Cup have shown that the role of team doctors needs to be reinforced in order to ensure the correct management of potential cases of concussion in the heat of the competition.”
The move follows similar action last week by Uefa which will apply the three-minute rule in Champions League and Europa League matches from next week.
In other matters, Fifa’s medical committee agreed not to impose blanket travel bans on countries affected by the Ebola outbreak but advised “the postponement of any non-essential and non-urgent FIFA courses there.”