Law change on ‘double-touch’ penalties after Alvarez row

Accidental “double-touch” penalties will only be permitted to be recovered if the kick was successful.

Following controversy in Atletico Madrid’s Champions League last-16 second-leg tie against Real Madrid in March, European football’s governing body Uefa requested that the laws governing these uncommon circumstances be revised.

Julian Alvarez, an Argentina international, slipped as he converted on a penalty kick and made a slight contact with the ball with his standing leg.

Real won the shootout and made it to the quarter-finals, much to the home side’s fury at the time and later.

Atletico inquired with Uefa about the validity of Alvarez’s penalty, but the governing body insisted that “under the current rule, the video assistant referee (VAR) had to call the referee to signal that the goal should be disallowed.”

The kicker must not play the ball again until it has touched another player, according to Article 14.1.

However, Uefa stated that it would be in discussions with Ifab and Fifa, the world’s governing body, regarding instances where a double touch is “clearly unintentional.”

The law does not specifically address what to do in the event of an accidental double-touch, and Ifab has since stated that referees have “understandably” been penalizing players at this point.

The board clarified that all national associations and confederations have received clarification because Law 14’s main goal is to address deliberate double standards.

Ifab acknowledged that a double touch could not possibly be deemed a goal and that such kicks could stand as a goal because the ball’s altered trajectory could prejudice goalkeepers.

However, it has now clarified that a “double-touch” kick that was scored accidentally should be retaken rather than ruled out.

An indirect free-kick will be awarded to the opposing team if they are unsuccessful during a game or when they are missed in a shootout.

The updated law will take effect on July 1st, but Ifab asserted that competitions may use it starting after that date.