Video Assistant Referee: What should we make of VAR?

We’ve seen the early outings of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system this month so what is the verdict so far?

I have to confess that I’m a bit of a sceptic when it comes to technology generally. Obviously I’m writing this on a website built on the most advanced computer tech of our times. But although information technology has its undoubted benefits, I still feel it needs to be treated with a healthy scepticism when it comes to sports. Video Assistant Referee is exactly a case in point.

There is an assumption today that anything new and technological must be a good thing and to think otherwise is almost heresy. Football though seems unsuited to me for this kind of technology. Not everyone reading this might be familiar with the game of cricket but for those that are (or who watch American sports) I think there are some issues, which might also have relevance to football and the experiment with VAR.

Cricket is tailor-made for this kind of technology with its regular breaks every few minutes and the constant opportunities to review and revise decisions. The problem is that even the use of the most cutting edge tech, (such as ‘hotspot’, which registers any contact between bat and ball), sometimes fails to provide a definitive answer.

So in these cases it reverts to the on-field umpire’s original decision. Again in a game that has such natural breaks in play this is just about tolerable. But it also further stretches out the play and leaves players and spectators in limbo waiting for a decision as to whether they are ‘out’ or not.

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Football though doesn’t have such natural breaks unless the ball goes out of play for a throw or corner, when VAR can be used. Although the ref on the pitch has the final say in any decision, how long will it be before there’s pressure for play to be stopped for any possible doubt over any offside or potential foul committed earlier in the play?

In addition cricket umpires are now almost never prepared to back themselves even in relatively clear-cut circumstances and always go upstairs for a decision. Umpires used to be treated, generally, with respect by players and spectators. However the advent of this technology has I believe undermined that respect as they now so often seek a second opinion in every situation. This can provoke more challenges and dissent from players.

Given how little respect is sometimes shown to referees in football, from some fans, players and increasingly, managers, anything that accelerates that trend would certainly not be a good thing for the game. However frustrating it can sometimes be, sport can surely only thrive if those who take part respect the officials who must manage it.

I also think there may be another unspoken agenda at work here. There are I believe significant commercial pressures behind the scenes for football to introduce regular breaks in play like cricket or US sports such as baseball.

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This of course allows for adverts to be shown during matches. You only have to see just how lucrative adverts are in US sports to see the reason for such possible pressure. You have to ask how long it will be before we see adverts in football games during these VAR induced breaks in play.

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