There was an incredible 64 minutes of added time during the opening four games of the 2022 World cup in Qatar. This is a result of FIFA's new rules as the look to clamp down on time wasting at the international tournament.
So far, there's been an average eight minutes of time added on per half, due to a new FIFA directive. The governing body is trying to maximise playing time and reduce time wasting, thanks to the new initiative introduced by Pierluigi Collina, the new chair of the FIFA referees committee.
England's win over Iran saw a whopping 27 minutes of time added on throughout the game, due to a head injury to Iran goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand in the first half, and then injuries Harry Kane and Harry Maguire in the second.
READ MORE: Harry Kane injury latest as Callum Wilson shows England World Cup class
"We want to avoid matches at 42, 43, 44 minutes from effective time," Collina told France Info. "So the times of substitutions, penalties, celebrations, medical treatment or of course VAR, will have to be compensated."
"You can expect longer halves, for sure," he told The Sun. "This is one of the topics we have spoken about. It will not be strange to see six, seven, eight minutes of extra time. We did this in Russia and everybody was positive."
The bid to limit timewasting will please those fans who feel short-changed by a lack of competitive action. Back in August 2017, Burnley and West Brom supporters saw just 47 minutes and 40 seconds of actual football played during a Premier League fixture.
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