FIFA has officially approved a change to the yellow-card accumulation system for the 2026 World Cup, adapting the rules to the tournament's expanded format with an extra knockout round.
Under the new decision, single yellow cards will be wiped after the group stage and then again after the quarter-finals, reducing the risk of players missing key matches through suspension.
The amendment was part of a wider set of decisions taken by the FIFA Council in Vancouver only weeks before the next World Cup begins in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
The Council also approved other law changes for the tournament, including measures related to players leaving the field in protest at refereeing decisions and covering their mouths during confrontations.