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Premier League referees will change the way they judge hair pulling next season after three players were sent off for the offence in 2025-26.<\/b><\/p>\n
Officials will also be asked to place a greater emphasis on grappling and holding inside the area after it became commonplace on corners and set-pieces.<\/p>\n
A solution to stop the goalkeeper “tactical timeout” is also set to be introduced.<\/p>\n
The measures were agreed at the Premier League AGM earlier this month after consultation with the game improvement advisory group. <\/p>\n
They form part of the “football principles” and “refereeing points of emphasis” for 2026-27.<\/p>\n
All three red cards for hair pulling came through a video assistant referee review, and led to criticism from the managers of the players involved. <\/p>\n
Everton<\/a>‘s Michael Keane, Manchester United<\/a>‘s Lisandro Martinez and Sunderland<\/a>‘s Dan Ballard were all sent off for hair pulling after a VAR intervention.<\/p>\n United boss Michael Carrick called it “one of worst decisions I’ve seen”<\/a> but lost an appeal<\/a> to get the three-match ban overturned.<\/p>\n Stockport County defender Josh Dacres-Cogley was dismissed for the offence in the League One play-off final too.<\/p>\n But from next season, not every time a player is seen to pull an opponent’s hair will a red card be shown.<\/p>\n Instead, greater emphasis will be placed on both the level of force and the intention. <\/p>\n