The VAR Debate: Technology Impact on Football Decisions

The VAR was introduced a few seasons ago to reduce the burden on referees. VAR (Video Assistant Referee) is a technology-driven system used in football to assist referees in making crucial decisions. This match official assists the referee with the help of video footage.

The VAR: When does a referee use it?

VAR can only be used while making these four decisions:

1. Goal/No Goal: Everyone knows about the “Hand of God.” But with VAR, nobody can handle the back to the back of the net. VAR helps the referee in a goal-scoring situation. It checks fouls during build-ups, offside, and every possible thing that can lead to a no-goal.
2. Penalty/ No penalty: Penalty decisions are checked by the Video assistant. He makes sure that the call is fair for both teams.
3. Direct Red Card: Sometimes the offense is too harsh that VAR asks the referee to look at the monitor on the field. The referees often change their decisions after VAR suggestions.
4. Mistaken identity: Sometimes a referee might issue a yellow or red card to the wrong person. VAR helps in identifying the right culprit.

The on-field referee decisions have the upper hand. VAR works silently, looking closely at players during set-pieces and also off-the-ball incidents. Despite all this, there are a few controversies building up.

Offside decisions

VAR has surely helped the sideline referees with offside. Referees sometimes can have a hard time spotting offside. VAR has made their work easy. However, this introduction has led to a few changes. Now, the referees are asked to lift the flag later than they used to do on offside calls. Sometimes, the line used to align the players has a different angle that sparks debates on whether the decisions are correct or not. This also leads to a lengthy delay, breaking the momentum of the teams and players.

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Handball

Handling the ball is now an even bigger offense in football. The players need to keep their hands tight to their bodies. With the introduction of VAR, any ball that touches a hand away from the body is a penalty. Sometimes, the player doesn’t get enough time to move away from the ball. The decisions have turned out poor on several occasions.

Slowing the game flow

VAR decisions often take minutes. Sometimes referees are asked to look at the monitor. He watches the incident from every possible angle and then makes his decision. This break in the game flow is very frustrating from everyone’s point of view. Earlier, it was mentioned that replays would be shown in real-time. However, with time referees get enough slow-mo cams to review the incident.

Impact on fan engagement and experience

Earlier, a goal celebration led to a huge roar in the stadium. Spectators would cheer and celebrate with their team. Now, they wait for VAR to make the decision. Half of the excitement is already lost when VAR checking appears on the big screen.

VAR has had a massive impact on football. Some decisions in recent times have been debatable. However, many decisions have been fair and that will be the demand for the future.