The 2022/23 Premier League season involves a key change after club shareholders agreed to a change on substitution rules back in March.
Following a consultation and vote from all 20 Premier League CEOs, managers are now permitted to make five substitutions per game, within a new framework.
Five changes per match were initially allowed during the Covid-19 disrupted season of 2019/20, but that was reversed back to three ahead of the 2020/21 campaign.
However, despite opinion appearing to be split within Premier League circles, clubs voted in favour of a return to the five-sub rule.
MORE: Which teams are in the 2022-23 UEFA Champions League?
How many substitutions allowed in Premier League in 2022/23?
From the 2022/23 season, Premier League teams will be permitted to make up to five substitutions in a single game.
The rules around the new allowance are subject to certain restrictions along the same lines as they initially were in 2019/20.
Managers can now name a maximum of nine substitutes on their matchday team sheet, including goalkeepers, with in-game changes only allowed at three intervals.
A total of five substitutions can be made in regular time (90 minutes plus added time) but each manager is only permitted three opportunities to make those changes, including halftime and hydration breaks.
Why has the Premier League changed the subs rule?
The Premier League has consistently stated its case as an issue of player welfare, particularly ahead of the 2022 World Cup this year.
"The wellbeing of players and staff remains a priority and the Premier League continues to monitor the national Covid-19 situation and adapt protocols as required, in line with the latest guidance from public health authorities and medical experts," it said through an official statement.
The bulk of major leagues across Europe opted to retain their own Covid-19-enforced five substitutions rule, with the Premier League remaining as an outlier.
The Premier League has ruled in favour of the reintroduction of five substitutes from the start of the 2022-23 season.
— The Athletic UK (@TheAthleticUK) March 31, 2022
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Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp led the calls for change, but it was opposed by managers and fans of 'smaller' teams, due to its perceived benefit for bigger squads filled with star talent.
However, despite the controversy, the Premier League change was backed by the Professional Footballers' Association.
"The adoption of this rule is a welcome step forward in what needs to be an ongoing effort to address issues with player fatigue," said PFA Chief Executive Maheta Molango.
Experts believe that the evolution of the game on and off the field lends to a more rigorous playing style, and along with the increased fixture schedule, this change was necessary.
"Without a doubt, the tempo of the game his higher today than it was last season and the season before," Chris Barnes, a sports scientist for UEFA working alongside sports performance tech company Catapult, told The Sporting News, "and we have seen a trend now for over 12 years where the tempo of the game has increased."
"This is probably the most random game in the world, and so in order to function effectively within that, players physically have to withstand repeated bouts of high intensity work interspersed by low intensity work," Barnes said. "What we've seen, quite simply, is the number of these bouts and the intensity of these bouts year over years has increased.
"This change has been brought in because of the concerns expressed by coaches and staff. They are concerned to a multitude of factors that include travel and recovery, and ultimately it's about performance."
Who will the rule help or hinder in 2022/23?
The main criticism of the rule change is the ability of Premier League big-hitters, such as champions Manchester City, Liverpool, Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur, to make extra substitutions from a star-studded squad.
The argument goes that teams further down the Premier League food chain are restricted in what changes they can make, due to financial limitations and squad depth.
An ability to make changes to punish a tired defence with fresh attacking options favours the likes of City and Liverpool, with the 2021/22 numbers backing up the concerns.
As per data from March 2022, City and Liverpool were joint-second for goals scored by substitutes in Premier League action, with six each.
Substitutions surely don't get any better than this!@IlkayGuendogan is your 2021/22 Castrol Game Changer of the Season award winner, with this #PL-clinching cameo! 🏆#PLAwards | @ManCity pic.twitter.com/I25WFGa1NY
— Premier League (@premierleague) May 28, 2022
Manchester United were No.1 on the list, with 10 goals off the bench, including four from England star Marcus Rashford.
Squad depth also allows for greater scope on mid-game changes — particularly in the busy New Year period — with United again leading the way with 79 substitutions made in the first seven months of the 2021/22 season. Of course, United ended up enduring their worst ever Premier League season, with a return of 58 points.
West Ham star Said Benrahma ended the campaign as the most subbed-off Premier League player in 2021/22 with 22 early exits for the Hammers.
Premier League 2022/23 TV channels, live streams
| UK | USA | Canada | Australia | |
| TV channel | Sky Sports, BT Sport | USA Network, Telemundo, Universo | — | — |
| Streaming | NOW TV, Sky Go, Amazon Prime | fuboTV, Peacock | fuboTV | Optus Sport |
UK: Matches are carried across Sky Sports and BT Sport streaming and TV platforms, with select matches on Amazon Prime.
USA: Select matches are televised on USA Network (English) and Telemundo or Universo (Spanish), and all three channels can be streamed on fuboTV. The rest of the matches are streamed on NBC platform Peacock for subscribers.
Canada: Every Premier League game streams live and on demand exclusively via fuboTV.
Australia: Fans in Australia can stream matches live and on demand on Optus Sport.
