FIFA are considering scrapping the offside rule, according to a report in The Times.

The newspaper reports that FIFA president Sepp Blatter has discussed what would be the most radical rule change in the sport for decades.
Blatter has apparently spoken to the president of the International Hockey Federation, Leandro Nagre, about how hockey abolished the rule in the 1990s.
"He asked me a lot of questions about it and how successful it was, although he never offered an opinion, so it was difficult to judge what football might do," said Negre.
"But he did seem very interested in how we had implemented it."
The offside rule in hockey was abolished in 1998 after a trial period two years earlier, a move which has been credited with making the game more free-flowing and exciting as a spectacle.
Veteran BBC sports commentator Barry Davies firmly believed that it would be a great move for football.
"I would love to see it given a trial in the lower leagues," he said.
"It would probably take a long time for players to adjust. It's also very demanding physically, but I was amazed at how quickly hockey adapted and there's no doubt the game is better for it."
Davies believes that the abolition of offside is not the only rule that football could borrow from hockey, suggesting that the green card - which leads to a two minutes in the sin bin for players - would also work well.

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/02032010/58/world-cup-2010-fifa-ponder-scrapping-offsides.html

"The most radical rule change in sports for decades" indeed needs another review. . .

Why does Blatter get involved in such stupid ideas. Offside has its problems and I don't think it would simply bring about route one football but it is a radical change to a game we all enjoy in its current basic state and there a lot more simpler changes that can be made to help the game.

Not sure where I stand on this issue. . . .Like everything in life, it has advantages & disadvantages.

It's pretty difficult to imagine footie without offside,but the truth is that Blatter is trying to go around the obvious, which is implementing video evidence.
The way I see it,Footie will become extremely defensive if the offside rule is scrapped.Knowing that anybody can score from any position,it will lead to teams avoiding such,and the goals will dry up.

Eastbay:

It's pretty difficult to imagine footie without offside,but the truth is that Blatter is trying to go around the obvious, which is implementing video evidence.
The way I see it,Footie will become extremely defensive if the offside rule is scrapped.Knowing that anybody can score from any position,it will lead to teams avoiding such,and the goals will dry up.

Not sure I go with everything you've said but that (the highlighted) is SPOT ON!

My take on video evidence is this. . .can the poorer nations afford this?

FBS:

Not sure I go with everything you've said but that (the highlighted) is SPOT ON!
My take on video evidence is this. . .can the poorer nations afford this?

FIFA can afford to give $1million to countries as part of their GOAL project.
If FIFA wants goal-line technology/video evidence to work,they can make it work.
My take on this is that FIFA is using the highlighted in your post as a reason why it can't be introduced.The poorer nations pay fees/dues to FIFA.Why can't FIFA use part of this $1million to implement partially,if not totally something in the line of video evidence?
Besides,the issue of poor/rich nations should not come up.Let FIFA set the ball rolling by announcing that video evidence be used in its sanctioned competitions (e.g. World Cup).UEFA will follow suit.These bodies can't just be collecting levies,not with the lucrative sponsorship deals they have all over the place.
It's like cutting off the head to cure a head-ache:you scrap offside rule because you don't want to introduce the technology to help officials make better calls.
This might sound extreme but the view I'm giving is that gradually,with the likes of Overebo and co making calls that can be termed dubious,football is losing its credibility.Video evidence,wherever in place

Hell NO! Drogba will be scoring all the time?!

BUT on a second look at it, I think it will only make the game more competitive for the attackers and the defenders
and the likes of Yobo will definitely lose their shirts

@Eastbay, you do have some points but then I don't know if you followed some of the WCQ matches. If you did then you couldn't have missed the fact some countries are still using pali (card boards) for time/player change indicator.

I agree that there are poor nations involved with footie,particularly in Africa.In fact I think I remember seeing the cardboard being used in Africa and remembered wondering if I actually was believing my eyes at the time.
But truth be told,FIFA has more than enough dough to make any plan work anywhere in the world.
Sepp Blatter is basically sitting on pots of gold as FIFA president.I'm so sure FIFA will make a tonne of cash in SA in June,because corporate organizations are lining up themselves to make themselves sponsors of the World Cup.
I still think FIFA isn't doing enough to:
a: make 3rd World/African FAs financially independent from government.
b:encourage real football development in countries in these areas.
These points I raised are long-standing issues that Sepp Blatter used as his election campaign in 1998,and that was why African votes were largely in his favour during the elction against Hayatou.So far,it has come to naught.The scandal that erupted before the 2002 world cup where Blatter was implicated only served to tell us that there is lots of cash with FIFA and they do not know how to use it.
How does this tally with the title of this thread?Still boils down to FIFA avoiding the real,practical issues on ground for a quik fix all to make the game "attractive ".Hockey and football are two separate sports,hockey has a smaller pitch and their offside rule is so complicated,they actually could do without it.Right nowI don't think ther are too many complexities about the present offside rules as it stands today.Infact,the rule has been watered down to neutralise the defensive nature of some sides who bank on frustrating tactics like setting offside traps to focus on giving the advantage to the attacking player,though the kind of refs we have these days have suceeded in confusing us all the more.If FIFA was sincere,taking a few seconds off the clock to check video replays to get the right calls,as is done in tennis,cricket,rugby without taking away any of the excitement in any of those sports amongst others,will make the game more attractive to viewers who by and large want to see a game fairly decided.
My thoughts though:hope I make some sense

why, why,why,will make players sit back behind and will discourage attacking football

I think they want to see more goals to attract the Americans.

why dont u introduce video technology 1st be scrapping offside rule?

Kx:

why dont u introduce video technology 1st be scrapping offside rule?

americans would never be into soccer. if pele couldn't it, then who can?

Am not going to worry ma self on this one,. cuz anywhich way will all watch football am sure of that, FIFA can even scrap Goalkeepers in front of goal post i dont care.

Players will be scoring over 50 goals in a season then.

All you have to do is build a house in the 6 yard box and just chill.

I read it yesterday and had mixed feelings.I think its not a bad idea,we seen onside goals declared offside.It will make the game flow better and more entertaining, It was introduced in hockey and it worked well.

d move 'll encourage nothing but laziness.
it's an energy zapping move.

NO WAY

so that people like van nistelrooy and drogba will score 300 goals per season

[Hell NO! Drogba will be scoring all the time?! ;Dquote][quote][/quote]

good and bad

midfielder                        striker

          defender                                                               striker (stay with keeper, u move i sack u)

                                                                                      striker (chewing gum keeper, u move i injure u)
GK      defender(thou shall not leave ya keeper, under any circumstance)

                                                                                      striker (your hand should always be on the post, u move i change u)
           defender
                                                                            striker
                                    midfielder

Coach DC's formation ©2010, largerback please note, ALL Rights Reserved (you copy for eagles use, i sue u!)

what is offside? i have been praying for it to be scrap, it is a technical jargon you left to the mercy of ref, how many goals have we seen that are off but are allowed and how many great goals are ruled off, pls let them remove it, it does nothing good for soccer. or can someone tell 2 advantages of offside?

hasyak:

or can someone tell 2 advantages of offside?

drog. . .

hasyak:

what is offside? i have been praying for it to be scrap, it is a technical jargon you left to the mercy of ref, how many goals have we seen that are off but are allowed and how many great goals are ruled off, pls let them remove it, it does nothing good for soccer. or can someone tell 2 advantages of offside?

Awesome, less stress for referees more work for defenders, more shouting for goalie (like. . . make una come back na, una dey crase?)

Dual Core:

                                     midfielder                        striker

          defender                                                               striker (stay with keeper, u move i sack u)

                                                                                      striker (chewing gum keeper, u move i injure u)
GK      defender(thou shall not leave ya keeper, under any circumstance)

                                                                                      striker (your hand should always be on the post, u move i change u)
           defender
                                                                            striker


l                      midfielder

Coach DC's formation ©2010, largerback please note, ALL Rights Reserved (you copy for eagles use, i sue u!)

lmao!

never

I cant wait to see how this would turn out. Many goals will be score surely

Dual Core:

                                     midfielder                        striker

          defender                                                               striker (stay with keeper, u move i sack u)

                                                                                      striker (chewing gum keeper, u move i injure u)
GK      defender(thou shall not leave ya keeper, under any circumstance)

                                                                                      striker (your hand should always be on the post, u move i change u)
           defender
                                                                            striker
                                    midfielder

Coach DC's formation ©2010, largerback please note, ALL Rights Reserved (you copy for eagles use, i sue u!)

GOOD JOB. lol

Yaaaaaaaaay! Lets go there,
Time to go those lazy attackers that stays upfront only!

lol, the most silly idea i have ever seen, lol, i am even praying that FIFA should stop strikers or players from entering the smaller 18 yard box, blatter is here talking about eradicating offside. ruud, drogba, yakubu, Raul and Bebertus would score like 500 goals each in their various leagues, with these kinda players, you won't even know the goalkeeper from the strikers.

bandely:

Yaaaaaaaaay! Lets go there,
Time to go those lazy attackers that stays upfront only!

Abi o, no more run run! Finally me and you fit enter football now

Sepp did wet crack
I've done it before, then i made some weird decisions

Hello Joseph,are you high on weed or crack