20 Minutes Red Card: Tested in World Rugby
The controversial 20-minute red card rule in rugby has been approved for a final global trial, the last step before its possible permanent adoption in the laws of the game.
This regulation allows a player sent off for foul play to be replaced by another player after 20 minutes. However, the offending player may not return to the match.
World Rugby gave the green light to this trial during its council meetings this week, despite some resistance from some international unions. The rule has almost unanimous support in the Southern Hemisphere, where it was conceived and initially tested, and will now be implemented in all elite competitions from August 1st.
World Rugby’s Executive Board has approved the global trial of the 20-minute red card in elite competitions. This decision is based on a comprehensive review of successful trials conducted in international rugby and elite clubs over the past year.
World Rugby Press Release
The aim of the 20-minute red card is to maintain the spectacle and competitive integrity of elite matches, while upholding rugby’s unwavering commitment to player welfare. The trial will be conducted across all elite competitions before a final decision on its permanent adoption in 2026.
In this test, a player who commits foul play that is not considered deliberate or intentional will receive a red card and be permanently expelled from the match. However, their team will be able to return to their full formation after 20 minutes by substituting the expelled player with one of the available substitutes. This ensures that it is the individual players, and not the team as a whole, who bear the consequences of reckless actions.
It is important to note that referees retain the authority to issue a full and permanent red card for any foul play deemed deliberate and highly dangerous. Two yellow cards will constitute a 20-minute red card, unless the second infraction meets the threshold for a full red card.
The 20-minute red card will join the series of global law trials already in force and will make its debut at the Women’s Rugby World Cup in England this August, as well as being used in the Under-20 Championship in June.
Australia’s Samu Kerevi received a 20-minute red card for this tackle on Wales’ Jac Morgan during the Autumn Nations Series clash in Cardiff.
David Rogers/Getty Images
If the 20-minute red card passes the final stage of testing through its use in this year’s Women’s World Cup and other elite competitions, it is likely to be incorporated into the laws for the race towards the 2027 Rugby World Cup and beyond.
One of the criticisms of the 20-minute red card is that it is not a sufficient deterrent for illegal head contact or foul play, but WR chairman Brett Robinson said the game’s global governing body is committed to its unwavering promotion of player safety.
Our mission is to ensure that rugby is an attractive sport to play and watch. The 20-minute red card preserves the equity and drama of elite competition by punishing the individual, not the entire team or the spectacle. Player welfare is non-negotiable. We monitor data on head injuries, tackle height, and concussions rigorously and transparently. If the evidence indicated that this trial posed a greater risk, we would end it immediately.
Brett Robinson, WR Chairman
This decision comes 24 hours after American player Alev Kelter received only a three-week suspension for stepping on an opponent in her team’s loss to Australia in the Pac4 series in Canberra. Kelter, however, received a straight red card, which is still used despite its 20-minute variant, but judicial officials were not convinced that she intended to hit Georgina Friedrichs, center of the Wallaroos.
Sevens star and now Wallaroos player Charlotte Caslick was one of several Australian players who questioned the length of the suspension, which also sparked a social media uproar.
World Rugby also announced a centralized disciplinary process, which will allow for “faster and more consistent decision-making”.
