Andy Robertson has already found a 'hack' to beat FIFA’s new throw-in countdown

Fans think Andy Robertson has found a loophole in FIFA's new throw-in countdown after he used a simple tactic to overcome the five-second rule during Scotland's World Cup opener.

With one game played, Scotland sit top of Group C ahead of games against Brazil and Morocco after John McGinn scored the only goal of the game against underdogs Haiti.

It was Scotland's first win at a World Cup since a 2-1 victory over Sweden in 1990 and after the full-time whistle, captain Andy Robertson gave his thoughts on the historic occasion at Boston Stadium.

"What an amazing feeling. The lads achieved their dreams today," he said. "It was such a long day waiting, I can't imagine what the fans back home were like staying up so late."

"Three important points," he added. "OK people expected us to win, but we had to go out and do it. It was so important to win that game and I'm so glad we did it."

One of the big talking points from Saturday's game involved Robertson, who appears to have found a so-called 'hack' to overcome FIFA's new throw-in rule.

Earlier this year, the International Football Association Board (IFAB) announced a host of changes for the upcoming tournament as they attempt to increase match tempo and improve fan and player experience.

READ MORE: Six major rule changes at the 2026 World Cup that every fan needs to know about

One of those changes involves referees using a visible five-second countdown for throw-ins and goal-kicks to clamp down on time-wasting.

If a throw-in is not taken before the countdown expires, possession will be awarded to the opposition. If a goal-kick is delayed beyond the countdown, the opposing side will receive a corner kick.

Anyway, with Scotland leading 1-0 thanks to McGinn's effort, Robertson could be seen instructing his teammates to get into position before picking up the ball, which in turn starts the referee's countdown.

Here's how fans on social media reacted to Robertson's quick thinking, as seen in the footage below.

One wrote: "Sums up modern football, a law brought in to make the game more entertaining is immediately neutralised by teams," and a second commented: "This is the kind of nous needed at Tottenham."

A third said: "Very clever, I dare say we will be seeing more of this. People will start to push back on the new rules in little ways, probably why FIFA only introduced them a few days before the tournament started."

A fourth wrote: "Bring in new law to stop time wasting... within 7 games, teams have found a loophole to continue time wasting," and a fifth added: "Three days the time wasting rule took… three days."

Scotland’s Andy Robertson has found a hack to beat FIFA’s new throw-in countdown:

Get your team-mates in position before you pick the ball up, which starts the referee’s countdown.

Very smart 👏 👏 👏 #Robertson #HAISCO #Scotland pic.twitter.com/UTMefWGp4C

— Charlie P Mullan (@CharliePMullan) June 14, 2026

Scotland manager Steve Clarke hits back at critics during post-match media duties

Speaking after Saturday's clash against Haiti, Clarke fired back at those who suggested that Scotland would beat Haiti by a bigger margin.

"The narrative is by people who don't understand football," Clarke told ITV. "People with an opinion, but they don't understand football.

"I knew that would be a tough, tough game for us. That's the way it turned out. I thought Haiti were terrific tonight. They gave everything. But we got the three points, that's what we set out to do."

He added: "Everyone's saying 'must win'. Well, we won, so give us credit for winning."