Major VAR change which could affect Chelsea will be proposed in January | OneFootball

The International Football Association Board (IFAB) will consider extending VAR's authority to second yellow cards, which could affect Chelsea.

IFAB's Football and Technical Advisory Panels recently held a meeting to discuss a wide range of possible rule changes to improve the match flow and reduce tempo disruptions, as reported by The Times.

However, those were not the only topics discussed, as they also talked about the possibility of increasing VAR's power to include reversing on-pitch referees' second yellow card decisions.

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"In relation to the video assistant referee (VAR) protocol, it was discussed that, among others, the video match officials (VMO) should have the possibility to intervene when an incorrect second yellow card has been given," the official statement from IFAB reads.

"A relevant proposal will be submitted to the IFAB’s Annual Business Meeting, which is due to meet on 20 January 2026 in London."

Chelsea, who have had some indiscipline issues on the pitch recently, could of course feel the impact of such a change.

The Blues rank joint-seventh in the Premier League in terms of the most yellow cards (17), but are one of the only three teams whose players (Malo Gusto vs Nottingham Forest) have received a second yellow card.

In addition to that, Chelsea have had three red cards this season in the league, while no other team has had more than one.

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Joao Pedro was also recently shown a second yellow card, but it was in the Champions League match against Benfica.

It remains unclear whether such a change would benefit or cause even more problems for Chelsea, however.

Bear in mind that even Enzo Maresca admitted that both Gusto and Joao Pedro's second yellow cards for reckless challenges, while the two straight red cards were for denials of obvious goalscoring opportunities, which would not be affected by this change.