FIFA takes ‘daylight offside’ trials to Canadian league aiming to overcome Euro skeptics

ZURICH — Soccer’s global governing body is turning to North America in its bid to rewrite the offside law, launching so-called “daylight offside” trials this weekend in the Canadian Premier League after European officials balked at the proposal.

Under the experimental protocol that kicks off Saturday, attackers will be ruled onside if any goal-scoring part of their body is level with the second-last defender. Offside will be whistled only when there is clear visual space—”daylight,” in FIFA parlance—between the attacker and defender, a dramatic departure from the millimetre-level decisions now common in top-flight matches.

The change, championed by FIFA chief of global football development Arsène Wenger, aims to tilt the balance toward attacking play and reduce the marginal “armpit” or “toenail” offsides that have become routine with the help of automated camera systems. Critics counter that the revision could encourage deep-defending tactics and ultimately stifle goalmouth action.

“This is about positioning the Canadian Premier League at the forefront of innovation and contributing meaningfully to the global evolution of the game,” commissioner James Johnson said in a statement confirming the league’s role as test ground.

The International Football Association Board, which oversees the Laws of the Game, upgraded the daylight concept to live trials in February, but support from Europe’s powerful federations remains elusive. For the adjustment to reach the statute book, at least two of the four British associations must vote in favor at IFAB’s annual meeting, a threshold that has yet to be met.

Former England and Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher, now a prominent television analyst, predicted in 2024 that the shift “will be terrible for the game,” arguing it will nudge managers toward more conservative setups. A compromise option already floated would limit offside calls to instances where an attacker’s torso is beyond the defender, a middle path that could yet emerge if the Canadian experiment fails to silence skeptics.

FIFA will monitor data and feedback from the CPL throughout the trial period, hoping North American evidence can sway opinion ahead of next year’s rules summit.