Time to end the penalty stutter? Debate over run-up trick intensifies
Quick summary
BBC Sport examines the growing use of the 'stutter' penalty technique and whether football's lawmakers should intervene to ban it.
Full article
Attributed to original sourceKylian Mbappe's penalty miss in France's win against Morocco is the latest example of a player missing a penalty after stuttering in the run-up.
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What happened
The article explores the increasing prevalence of the stutter run-up in penalty kicks, where players deliberately pause or hesitate during their approach. It highlights recent examples from Jorginho, Bruno Fernandes, Hwang Hee-chan, and Bruno Guimarães, and discusses the disruption this causes goalkeepers. The piece weighs the argument that the technique borders on an illegal feint during the run-up against the view that it is a legitimate skill. Lawmakers and refereeing bodies are under pressure to clarify or change the rules ahead of upcoming seasons.
Chance analysis
If IFAB or referees tighten enforcement on penalty run-up feints, attacking players who rely on the stutter (notably Bruno Fernandes and Jorginho) may see conversion rates drop, while goalkeepers benefit from clearer timing. The stutter has become a high-leverage skill in tight matches and shootouts, so any rule change would affect penalty outcome modeling and set-piece preparation across elite leagues. This is a rules/governance story rather than a team or match story, so its prediction impact is diffuse but relevant for penalty-specific scenarios.
A potential rule clarification on penalty run-ups could marginally reduce success rates for stutter-dependent takers and improve goalkeeper save odds, affecting penalty and shootout predictions.
Penalty stutter techniques may be reined in by rule changes, which could affect conversion rate models for players like Bruno Fernandes and Jorginho.