The "ABBA" penalty shootout system was used for the first time on Thursday as part of a trial sanctioned by football's lawmakers, the International Football Association Board (IFAB).
UEFA opted to test it at the both the men's and women's European Under-17 Championship this month, and the women's semifinal between Germany and Norway was the first tie to go to penalty kicks.
Germany came out on top 3-2 on spot kicks to go through to the final, where they will meet Spain.
The new system, which is similar to a tennis tiebreak and is designed to reduce the potential advantage that the team taking a first penalty in a shootout currently may have.
We are about to see a new penalty shoot-out system after a 1-1 draw. #WU17EURO
➡️https://t.co/thbTnqxCZ5
📺 Eurosport pic.twitter.com/auW633AqHk- UEFA Women's EURO (@UEFAWomensEURO) May 11, 2017
Rather than the current process, which sees teams taking penalties automatically following each other in a sequence of pairs, the new system will see the side taking the first penalty alternate.
Team A will take the first spot kick, with Team B taking the first penalty for the second and third kicks, before Team A then takes the first kick for the fourth effort. The sequence then repeats itself for the final penalty and subsequent kicks that are required if the shootout goes into "sudden death."
So the current system used in the professional game is "ABAB," with the order being trialed "ABBA."