A new Premier League season brings a fresh set of rule changes, and this year is no exception. The campaign kicks off this Friday with Manchester United’s home match against Fulham, and excitement has been building steadily since Manchester City lifted the trophy in May to seal an unprecedented four consecutive titles.

The campaign begins this Friday with Manchester United’s home match against Fulham

Changes to Stoppage Time

The Premier League has introduced adjustments to stoppage time, following last year’s widely-discussed rule changes that led to matches often eclipsing 100 minutes in length. This season, officials will only start adding time on 30 seconds after a goal is scored, to account for players making their way back to their positions. The Premier League expects this adjustment to cause a significant drop in the amount of additional time this season.

Added time gets yet another overhaul after last year’s widely-discussed rule changes

Sidelines Packed with Subs

This campaign may see a more congested touchline with a greater number of substitutes now allowed to warm up on the edges of the pitch. The league will now permit five players to warm up at once, compared to three last season.

This campaign might see a more congested touchline with more subs now allowed to warm up

Bigger Roles for Ball Boys and Girls

One of the more noticeable changes since the Covid-19 pandemic has featured the introduction of ball cones – little white stations where players can collect a ball instead of a ball boy or girl having to pass one to them. This season will see the return of roaming ball assistants – to an extent. Ball boys and girls may pass a ball to a goalkeeper if the ball goes off for a goal kick, enabling potentially quicker restarts.

Ball cones will still be used heavily but ball assistants may now hand balls to goalkeepers

FA to Change Laws of the Game

The FA has introduced a selection of tweaks to its laws of the game, including new stipulations on concussion substitutes and penalties. Additional permanent concussion substitutions will now be available to teams across all competitions. The FA has also stipulated that encroachment by players will be penalized only if it has an impact, meaning that those who run into the box during a spot kick, but are not seen to have affected the game, will not be penalized.

Insight into VAR

The Premier League has launched a new account on X, formerly Twitter, which will provide near-live explanations of refereeing decisions. The account will post factual explanations of on-pitch refereeing decisions and the involvement of the video assistant referee (VAR), including the role of technology in the decision-making process.

The Premier League has unveiled an X account that will provide ‘near-live’ explanations of refereeing decisions

Handball Chaos Addressed

Earlier this month, officials said they were looking to cut down on the awarding of ‘soft penalties’ for handball during the 2024-25 season by showing leniency when the ball changes direction. Last season, fans were often left confused about the handball laws amid a string of harsh penalty decisions.

Former Premier League referee Kevin Friend revealed new guidance regarding handball

Former referee Kevin Friend said: “We saw some soft penalties last season for handball, so if it’s a clear directional movement from the ball from the foot to the hand, we’re not going to be penalizing that. We’re basically looking for examples where it clearly hits the arm unjustifiably, hands above the head, away from the body, to deliberately block the ball from going into the box or into the goal.”