Red, yellow, and now blue cards? Why sin bins won't work in football

Professional footballers could now face being shown a blue card and sent to a sin bin for cynical fouls and dissent, according to the International Football Association Board (IFAB).

IFAB wants to implicate the blue card to crack down on the worsening on-field behavior, with the game seeing a rise in on-field altercations.

As reported by The Guardian, tightened rules to prevent players from confronting the referee came into place in England at the start of this season, with increased financial sanctions being enforced for players who break them.

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The Football Association reported they were interested in trialing blue cards in the FA Cup and Women's FA Cup. Still, trials have not been authorized to start in the elite-level competitions.

According to The Guardian, UEFA president Alexsander Ceferin described the use of sin bins as 'the death of football,' and he isn't alone.

Many pundits and Premier League managers have had their say on the proposed addition of sin bins, and none of them spoke positively about the potential changes.

Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou believes sin bins will 'destroy' the game of football, with teams parking players behind the ball if they have a man sent off for ten minutes.

According to BBC Sport, Postecoglou said: "You'll have one team sitting there trying to waste time for 10 minutes waiting for someone to come back on. Every other game is trying to speed up and declutter. All we are trying to do is go the other way."

The addition of a Video Assistant Referee has caused much controversy in football, and Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp thinks it's another bad idea.

Speaking at a press conference, and reported by Sky Sports, Klopp said: "It doesn't sound like a fantastic idea in the first moment. But actually, I can't remember when the last fantastic idea came from these guys (IFAB)."

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If the law to have sin bins would be passed, it would be the biggest change in football since the introduction of yellow and red cards at the 1970 World Cup.

Newcastle manager Eddie Howe believes the current system with yellow and red cards works perfectly fine but needs to be applied properly and consistently.

Howe said: "I'm not a big fan, to be honest. I think that's what yellow cards are for. I think the current system works well; it's just got to be applied right," according to BBC Sport.

According to IFAB, a player who receives two blue cards in the match would be subsequently shown a red card, and if a player receives a yellow and a blue card, they would be sent off for that as well.

The Sun reported that former England international Paul Merson said: In football, you just sit ten behind the ball, and the game will be killed. The ball will go out, and they'll jog and get it. They'll waste time."

"That's how it's going to be. That's not football. They're ruining the game. It doesn't have to be changed that much. We are talking about the greatest sport in the world, and you're trying to change it."

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