Football Association plans to tackle abuse and discrimination in grassroots football by deducting points from clubs have been warmly welcomed by campaigners, who say punishments should be extended to cover fan behaviour and apply up the football pyramid too.
Rules announced by the governing body, to be implemented from the 2023-24 season, will lead to clubs below step six in the men’s game, and in tier three and below in the women’s, being docked points if players or coaches engage in discriminatory language or misconduct against a match official on more than one occasion across 12 months. The two-strikes rule would mean a club losing three to six points, with that potentially rising to 12 points for further offences.
