Due to the start of League 1 with 6 games condemned by walkover, there has been an ‘argument’ circulating on social media that a WO is valid if the ball rolls onto the field.
The start of Liga 1-2023 was not as expected as six clubs said they will not participate until the Peruvian Football Federation’s precautionary measure on broadcasting rights is lifted. With the FPF maintaining this legal measure, these teams did not show up and lost 3-0 by bye. However, this has caused doubts among fans as rumors arose that these WO were not carried out according to protocol.
It was reported that the ball did not fully roll on the pitch, so the game did not start and therefore WO is not valid. However, this statement is incorrect as the FIFA Laws of the Game do not provide for the aforementioned. That’s how he reveals it Caesar MongrutPresident of Departmental Arbitrators Commission of Lima.
“It was in the 1990s. Before, the whole team was formed, at least seven players on the field; then they ran with the ball, scored the goal and the game ended there,” Mongrut told La República. “Now the ball doesn’t have to roll, just wait the time according to the regulations (of the competition). In League 1, the waiting time is 10 minutes. The referees got it right,” he added.
“This change was made in 1996. It wasn’t part of the regulations, it was an order from FIFA. It was never part of the regulations,” he says. In that sense, the six games decided by WO are well-established in terms of protocol, Mongrut concludes, so an appeal to argue that the ball should be rolling would be wrong.
This is echoed by former FIFA referee Gilberto Hidalgo, who mentions that passing the ball to confirm a free kick is part of “football folklore” as it is not an established rule but an unnecessary tradition that has been held up until now still believed valid. “The WHERE is the absence of one of the teams, that’s all,” Hidalgo concludes to La República.
What is the fine for a walkover in league 1?
According to the regulations of league 1If a club fails to show up for the game, leaves the pitch or refuses to resume action, they are declared losers via a bye, which includes a score against 3-0, unless registered at the time of suspension with a better one Markers and a fine of 30 Units of Units (UIT), a sum equal to 148,500 soles. Likewise, the document highlights that if the offense is repeated, the penalty will be 50 UIT, equivalent to 247,500 soles.