Premier League clubs unanimously agree to major rule change for 2024/25 season affecting Manchester City

At a Premier League shareholder’s meeting on Thursday, clubs in the English top-flight have unanimously agreed to the introduction of semi-automated offside technology.

Semi-automated offside technology is a support tool for video match officials and on-field referees to help them make faster, more reproducible, and more accurate offside decisions, according to a description from FIFA.

It will become the latest in an ever-growing line of technological advancements in the Premier League to aid the decision making of referees, following on from goal-line technology and video assistant referees.

As per confirmation via a Premier League statement on Thursday afternoon, English top-flight clubs have ‘unanimously approved’ the use of semi-automated offside technology (SAOT) for the 2024/25 season.

It is understood that the Premier League will use the same cameras and software that UEFA uses in the men’s Champions League – slightly different from the technology which FIFA has used, where a match ball includes a chip to provide data.

As part of the same statement, the Premier League has revealed it’s belief that the SAOT will be ready to use following one of the autumn international breaks, while the new technology will also save around 30 seconds per decision.

The full statement from the Premier League read: “At a Premier League Shareholders’ meeting today, clubs unanimously agreed to the introduction of Semi-Automated Offside Technology.

“The new system will be used for the first time in the Premier League next season, and it is anticipated the technology will be ready to be introduced after one of the Autumn international breaks.”

The statement continued, “The technology will provide quicker and consistent placement of the virtual offside line, based on optical player tracking, and will produce high-quality broadcast graphics to ensure an enhanced in-stadium and broadcast experience for supporters.”