Bundesliga clubs agree to increase substitutions to five per match
The 36 clubs of the Bundesliga and 2. Bundesliga have agreed to temporarily increase the number of substitutions allowed per game, the German Football League (DFL) announced on Thursday.
| Emil Forsberg gets replaced by Amadou Haidara. | Photo: GEPA Pictures/Sven Sonntag |
In a video meeting on Thursday, the 36 clubs agreed to implement the temporary rule change, which was recently been made possible by The International Football Association Board in light of the corona crisis.
Each club will have a total of three opportunities to make substitutions during a match, including the half-time break. No more than two players should be subbed on at once, according to DFL's recommendations.
At today's meeting, it was also agreed that the current 2019/20 season will be finished if possible – even if it means the season would continue beyond 30 June.
Last month, the DFL composed an extensive protocol for the resumption of Bundesliga and 2. Bundesliga football behind closed doors.
Among other things, the protocol states that only 98 people are allowed at pitch level during matches - including players, coaching staff, referees, ball boys and security workers among others.
It also states that high fives, handshakes, hugging and spitting should be avoided and that players should celebrate with "brief elbow or foot contact".
"I'm intrigued to see how the lads celebrate. Everyone understands that they shouldn't come too close together, but I think we have to accept that the players may forget sometimes in the emotion," Gladbach coach Marco Rose said at a press conference on Thursday.
