Winter Break, VAR – English FA Announce New Changes To Premier League

England’s Football Association on Friday, announced new changes in Premier League, FA Cup and EFL starting from the 2019/20 season.

In the new regulations, Premier League clubs will have a two-week winter break in February. Each weekend during the break will feature five matches on the first weekend and five the following weekend.

This historic move will also mean that the FA Cup fifth round will now move to midweek to accommodate the break and replays will be abolished in that round, having already been scrapped in the quarterfinals from this season.

“This is a significant moment for English football and one that we believe will greatly benefit both club and country,” Martin Glenn, FA chief executive, said.

“It’s no secret that we have a very congested fixture calendar and over recent years we have been working with the whole game to find a solution.

“Today’s announcement proves that football can come together for the good of the game. We have also found a way to give the players a much-needed mid-season break, whilst keeping the much-loved Christmas schedule in place,” Glenn added.

Meanwhile, the change will see Video assistant referee (VAR) used at Premier League grounds, following a vote by English Football League clubs.

Also, in the new regulations the EFL Cup matches will now go straight to penalty kicks if the scores are level after 90 minutes to reduce “additional fatigue issues that are occasionally caused when the midweek ties go beyond the traditional 90-minute period.”

Extra time will now only be played in the final at Wembley, while the ABBA penalty format is also to be scrapped and reverted back to a Team A, Team B penalty system.