Could football extend half-time break for next season?

Football law makers will discuss extending the half-time interval to almost half an hour, at a meeting on Thursday.

Half-time may stretch to 25 minutes in football - but the proposals have not been met favourably (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)

International Football Advisory Board (IFAB), the game’s decision-makers, will consider a request from South America to increase the arbitrary break to 25 minutes from season 2022-23.

Officials from the CONMEBOL division of world football made the suggestion last month and it will be discussed online at the end of the IFAB annual business meeting. Any suggestions which pass the initial stage of talks will be forwarded to the AGM, held in Zurich next March, for ratification.

However FIFA advisors have already raised early concerns over the idea which would give clubs and events larger scope to stage entertainment during the interval. Player welfare and injuries arising from extended inactivity were among reasons which cast doubt on the proposal’s viability.

World football officially increased intervals from 10 to 15 minutes across FIFA in 1995.

A similar proposal to extend the break to 20 minutes in 2009, fell.

Get a year of unlimited access to all The Scotsman's sport coverage without the need for a full subscription. Expert analysis of the biggest games, exclusive interviews, live blogs, transfer news and 70 per cent fewer ads on Scotsman.com - all for less than £1 a week. Subscribe to us today