FIFA gets to grip with sticky tape issue

I have the feeling it was Cristiano Ronaldo who kicked off the habit of wrapping vast amounts of sticky tape around the bottom of his socks and above the boots. I thought at first it was to keep shin pads in place but it's clearly not, and I think it's now used as protection against studs more than anything else.

Now vast amounts of tape are being used every week at all levels of the game. Tape makers' share prices must be going through the roof.
But be prepared for a collapse in the market.
The trouble is this tape is generally white or black, and not the same colour as the socks that players are wearing. In fact, it often looks as though the player is wearing two-tone socks, with half white and half the regulation colour.
When both sides do this, it creates a problem, especially for linesmen, or assisatnt referees, who often look at socks as a way of identifying easily which player has touched the ball. In a crowded penalty area, often the sock is the only way of identifying which player has kicked the ball, and thus if a player is an offside position.
So football's law makers are recommending that from next season, all tape used will have to be the same colour as the socks. The problem is I don't think the tape is made in many sock colours. I'm predicting a lot of teams are going to be wearing white socks next season.