FIFA President Gianni Infantino recently talked about changing the offside rule at the World Sports Summit. He suggested a “daylight” idea to help attackers more and make football faster and more exciting. This comes from earlier thoughts by Arsène Wenger, who leads FIFA’s global football development. The goal is to cut down on tiny offside decisions that stop the game.
Current Offside Rule
A player is offside if any part of their body (except hands/arms) is nearer to the opponents’ goal line than both the ball and the second-last opponent when the ball is played. This often leads to decisions based on tiny margins, like a toe or shoulder ahead.
Proposed Daylight Principle
Under the change, an attacker would remain onside if any goal-scoring body part (e.g., foot, head) is level with or behind the defender, requiring clear “daylight” (full separation) for an offside flag. Infantino stated: “Maybe in the future, the attacker will be in front,” evolving from past rules where attackers had to be behind or level.
Infantino’s Comments
At the meeting, he focused on making the game more fun and exciting. He said: “We’re checking the rules to see how we can make the game more attacking and attractive.” No timeline was given, but they’re working on it together with fixes for VAR.
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Historical Context
In 2020, Infantino supported a similar “daylight” offside idea, backing Wenger’s suggestion that attackers should be allowed a bit of advantage if any part of their body is in line with the defender. In May 2025, Wenger repeated that this rule could be brought in within about a year.