News : FIFA Women's World Cup: controversial penalty rule is weakened

The top governors of the International Football Association Board (Ifab) have temporarily and partially mitigated the controversial rule on penalties during the World Cup in France. The Ifab have relieved Fifa of warning the goalkeepers with a yellow card if they move off the line on penalties, it said in a statement.

But the restriction applies only to the penalty shoot-out - but not for given penalties during a game.

Especially after the 3: 3 between Argentina and Scotland in the World Cup group stage, there had been criticism of the strict rule interpretation by the referees. The Scottish goalkeeper Lee Alexander had initially parried a penalty. But because she had been at the moment of the shot by inches from the goal line, the video assistant intervened. The penalty was repeated - and Alexander saw the yellow card. Previously, there had been other comparable events in the tournament.

Reason for the suspension of the rule during the World Cup is the beginning of Saturday knockout phase, in which it can come from the knockout stages in the first knockout round. If a goalkeeper is warned with a yellow card, she would have to be sent off again in case of a new rule violation with yellow-red.

"Both Fifa and Ifab are therefore of the opinion that the obligation to warn a goalkeeper on penalties in games with the video assistants is not required and there is a risk that the penalty shoot-out would be distorted unfairly a goalkeeper are dismissed, "it says in the Ifab release. If a goalkeeper sees yellow-red during a penalty shoot-out, she can not be replaced by the substitute goalkeeper. It would have to go into the goal of a field player.

The German national team welcomes the decision: "That's right, the right move, which will give the goalkeepers more freedom in their heads than to think about what's happening now, a good decision," said national coach Martina Voss. Tecklenburg.