With the start of the new season just over a month away, a multiball system has been put in place for clubs competing across all three Enterprise National League divisions.
The International Football Association Board (IFAB) Laws of the Game state: “Law 2.3: The Ball – Additional balls which meet the requirements of Law 2 may be placed around the field of play and their use is under the referee’s control.”
From this season there will be 10 match balls allocated for each fixture:
- One ball in play
- One ball with the fourth official
- Eight balls distributed around the pitch
The eight balls will be placed on cones around the pitch next to a ball retriever – split as two along either touchline and two either side of each goal.
The use of the multi-ball system would be managed by the referee and – if deemed necessary – the multiball system can be deactivated for the remainder of the fixture.
If an additional ball enters the field of play during the match, the referee will stop play only if the additional ball interferes with play. The referee shall have the additional ball removed at the earliest opportunity.
As announced earlier this week, all Enterprise National League clubs will be using the Mitre Ultimax match ball for the coming season following the launch of the new partnership with Official Match Ball provider Mitre.
