2019 PRO Points of Emphasis
On the eve of the new season, PRO, in collaboration with MLS, can confirm it will again focus on improving the game and modifying player behavior through rigorous implementation of the Points of Emphasis, which have carried forward from 2017.
These are:
- Persistent Offenses
- Delay of Restart
- Dissent
- Holding in the Penalty Area
2018 review:
Persistent Offenses
Cautions decreased 40 percent per game during the 2018 regular season. PRO believes this reduction reflects a change in player behavior that began during the 2017 season.
Delay of Restart
In the early part of the 2018 cautions rose sharply, but moderated to an overall increase of 13 percent per game for the full regular season, indicating a modification in player behavior.
Effective match time increased in 2018 through proactive management of restarts and accurate implementation of time allowed for stoppages at the end of each half.
Dissent
Cautions per game remained largely consistent with the 2017 level.
Holding in the Penalty Area
The introduction of Video Review has seen a decrease in incidents of this nature occurring, but it remains an area of focus for PRO.