By Andrew Warshaw
May 4 – Two months after football’s lawmakers gave the green light to experiment with a new tennis-style penalty shootout system, UEFA are employing it at the European under-17 championship, which began in Croatia today.
Known as ABBA, the system is designed to prevent the team that shoots second from being put at a psychological disadvantage.
In March at the IFAB annual meeting reporters were told that 60% of penalty shootouts were won by the team that takes the first kick.
As a result, tests are being conducted under which the team which goes first has to wait two more turns to take their next kick – just like the start of tennis tiebreaks – in what football’s lawmakers are describing as an ‘ABBA’ sequence.
Under the system being trialled by UEFA, team A takes the first penalty, team B the second and third, team A the fourth and fifth and so on until each team has taken five. The sequence would continue if the shootout then goes to sudden death.
“The hypothesis is that the player taking the second kick in the pair is under greater mental pressure,” said UEFA.
“If the opposition’s first penalty in the pair has been successful, a miss by the second penalty-taker in the pair could mean the immediate loss of a match for his team, especially from the fourth pair of penalties onwards.”
UEFA said the system was also being tried out at the women’s European under-17 championship, which began in the Czech Republic on Tuesday.
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