The rules of football as a sport remain fairly constant, while other sports continually change, the rules in football find it much more difficult to make changes, and any changes made only affect minor details.

On this page, I share some thoughts with you that would radically change this sport:

            - The referee

            - Goalkeeper options

            - Free kicks

            - Offside

            - Throw-ins

            - Penalty kicks

            - Number of players

            - Scoring

The referee:

This modification is very simple and clear. Nowadays, football has become so fast-paced that one referee cannot cover the entire pitch, so the modification is to have two referees officiating the match, one on one side, the other on the other side..

Goalkeeper options:

According to this rule, the goalkeeper cannot catch the ball! They can touch it, hit it, or deflect it with their hands, but they cannot catch it. Thus, the game would only stop when:

- a goal is scored,

- the ball goes out of the soccer field,

- or when the referee stops the game.

If we watch a match now, let's see how many times the goalkeeper catches the ball and thus stops the game. How long is there no gameplay after that? However, the most significant 'yield' of this rule change would be how many goal-scoring opportunities arise because the goalkeeper couldn't catch the ball.

If the goalkeeper catches the ball, the opposing team gets an indirect free kick from the corner of the penalty area.

Free kicks:

There is no offside during free kicks,

During free kicks, at the moment the ball is kicked, the attacking team cannot have a player within the six-yard box.

Offside:

The offside rule would change in several ways:

- there is no offside in the entire starting circle (this brings the offside line forward from the halfway line),

- offside is, only when a pass is given with the foot, so if the ball is passed with other parts of the body - for example with the head - there is no offside,

- offside is, only if the attacker's shoe toe is ahead of the defending player's backward shoe. In other words, other body parts are not considered, which could lead to much clearer decisions.

Throw-ins:

A player can throw the ball to themselves (they can drop the ball in front of him/her), but the ball must touch the ground before he/she touch it with foot.

During throw-ins, opposing players must be at least nine meters away.

Penalty kicks:

Only the player taking the penalty and the goalkeeper are involved here. If the goalkeeper saves the penalty, or if the penalty taker hits the goal post, there is no continuation; the attacking team does not get another chance to score, and the game continues with a goalkeeper kick-out.

It is also worth considering that during penalty, the two goalkeepers stand facing each other. (Of course, if the match ends with a penalty shootout determining advancement, this does not apply.)

Number of players:

There are no draws; after 90 minutes, in the case of a draw, there is a 2*15 minute extension, however, before each 15 minutes, continues with two less players,

if there was a red card earlier, and it was more than 30 minutes ago, in this case, the team has to take out one player without substitution.

If the extension doesn't yield results, penalty kicks follow.

Scoring:

In modern football, if a team wins by more than three goals, it's considered a significant and a greater goal difference is even more significant. In a league where x points are awarded for a win, more points could be given for victories with a larger goal difference, and naturally, instead of zero points, the losing team could receive a deduction.

For example, if a win currently earns 3 points, then a victory by at least four goals would earn 4 points (and the losing team would get -1), and a victory by at least seven goals would earn 5 points for the winner and -2 points for the loser. Of course, this could be further 'colored', and for example, points could be deducted not only from the losing team in this league (competition) but also from the next one, because if they are no longer interested in this competition for some reason, they should have to fight for the next one.

(Of course, with the new rules, more goals are expected, so these additional point opportunities should be determined with these changes in mind.)

Summary:

The changes affecting the referees have already been mentioned above; both are responsible for one half of the field each. Due to the decrease in goalkeeper options, the number of goals would significantly increase. If we watch a match now, let's see how many times the game stops because the goalkeeper catches the ball, and he lies down, and then the game stops. However, if the goalkeeper cannot catch the ball, it stays in play, and the attacking team remains in position. Also the decrease in opportunities of offside helps attacking football, and these rules would lead to much simpler decisions. Currently, during throw-ins the team throwing the ball is practically at a disadvantage because one player stands at the sideline, who usually cannot throw the ball far, and their opponents are next to their teammates. In contrast, with these rules, the throw-in becomes equivalent to a free kick. Playing with fewer players during the extension is a win for the spectators in any case, and playing with fewer players highlights the differences between the two teams much more, which aids attacking football.

I know that the rule-makers change the rules difficultly of football, so these were just musings of someone, who loves the football, contemplating how this game could be improved. However, I shared them in the hope that parts or all of them might reach the rule-makers, who would consider them.