5 Substitutes in Football: Pros and Cons -By Ayobami Okerinde

​The International Football Association Board (IFAB) at its AGM in Doha, Qatar, on Monday, 13 June 2022, approved the permanent use of five substitutes in football. IFAB is the custodian and body charged with making rules in football. Five substitutes in football were first introduced after some leagues in Europe resumed following the outbreak of COVID-19 across the world. Its introduction saw football clubs using 5 substitutes in football, as against the usual 3. However, substitutions can only be made thrice (still maintaining the status quo), this means that coaches can only introduce 5 substitutes three times.

At the end of the 2019/2020 season, some leagues voted to continue the use of five substitutes, while leagues like the English Premier League reverted to 3. The changes made by IFAB now mean 5 substitutes are now permanent in football, and teams are now allowed to name 15 substitutes on the team sheet instead of 12. Before its permanent introduction, there have been debates on what five substitutes mean in football.

​
PROS

The introduction of five substitutes will no doubt be beneficial to teams and players. Fringe players and academy players will now have more game time compared to what it used to be before. Fringe players and academy players will now have the chance to feature in games in the EPL and Champions League and will no longer be limited to cup games.

Injury prevention is key to the development of a player, and also key to the success of any club. Players have been prone to more injuries than ever before in the last few years, no thanks to the huge number of games players have to play on club sides and country. Europe in the last few years introduced the Nations League to replace friendly matches. With its introduction, coaches will have the chance to give players rest during games, while also effectively managing their game time.

Tactical ingenuity is another thing. Coaches will have to prove how tactically adept they are now. Attacking teams like Manchester City and Liverpool might use all five substitutes as attackers to win a game or pull a comeback. Also, defensive-minded coaches like Simeone and Tuchel can bring in more defenders to win games.

The influx of players into top leagues. This rule will also see an influx of footballers into top leagues and football in general. This will allow more youngsters to achieve their aim of becoming PROs as the squad limit has increased.

​
CONS

The introduction of five substitutes could easily prove to be a rule that will only benefit the rich and big teams, and further widen the gap between teams. Ahead of the 2020-2021 season, 11 Premier League teams voted against the use of five substitutes as they believed it would give bigger teams an unfair advantage. Bigger teams have bigger squads, budgets and talents than smaller teams and the rules will further widen the gap.

Another disadvantage of the rule is that it will lead to stockpiling of players. Bigger teams can now afford to get the best talent off smaller teams due to an expansion in squad size. Players might now prefer moves to bigger teams as they are assured of bigger paychecks and opportunities to win trophies.

The permanent use of five substitutes could mean more games for footballers. There are debates currently ongoing on plans to make the World Cup a biennial tournament instead of the current four-year format. The plan has been met with opposition from bodies such as UEFA and CONMEBOL. This could lead to tournaments such as the Super League, Expanded Champions League and World Cup coming into fruition.

The credibility of the Financial Fair Play (FFP) rule has been thrown into jeopardy. The rules were introduced to keep teams in check for spending above their earnings. This change will give bigger teams the chance to recruit and thereby flouting the FFP rule. The relevance of FFP is at stake. However, UEFA are set to scrap FFP rules due to the new regulations.

The introduction of five substitutes will no doubt help and improve football, but it could be a rule that might be exploited by the rich and bigger teams.