FIFA announced at its congress in Vancouver, Canada, that plans were being drawn up and discussed for a major change to the global game.
A new rule could be introduced that says club teams at all levels must field at least one homegrown player from their Under-20 or Under-21 structures in a match at all times.
What this exactly means is unclear at this stage, but it would appear that, in this instance, all clubs would have to field a junior player from that country at all times throughout the 90 minutes.
The term “homegrown” can be broad. The Premier League in England already has a rule that says clubs must have at least eight “homegrown” players in their 25-man squad for the season, but that relates to players developed through the English system, not those who have been developed by the specific club.
It is likely this rule would apply to that as well, but it would force the hand of coaches and, in many instances, make them think outside the box.
The exact wording of the FIFA statement is: “The FIFA Council also unanimously approved a consultation process with all relevant stakeholders for a regulatory obligation that senior club teams are obliged to always have at least one homegrown player from the U-20 or U-21 category on the field of play, and for the proposal to be submitted to the FIFA Council in the next year.”
In South Africa’s Betway Premiership, where many teams value experience over anything else, that could be a major shift.
While the exact framework of what defines such a player is not yet known, Orlando Pirates, for example, have fielded just two players who would loosely fit that description this season, Relebohile Mofokeng and Cemran Dansin.
Under this new proposal, one of those two would have had to be on the field for every minute of every game, putting huge pressure on the likes of Mofokeng.
Similarly, at Mamelodi Sundowns, they have used five players who fit that description, but very sparingly, and having to always have one on the pitch would be a major shift for the coaching staff.
The fact is, too, that the said player cannot be a foreigner, which in the South African context is not such an issue, but for top clubs from the Premier League, for example, it is more of an issue.
It is not so much the fact of giving these types of players more game time, but the fact they always have to be there.
It remains to be seen if the proposal sees the light of day. It will likely face some opposition, but if it does, it will force a change in thinking for coaches around the world.
