Premier League referees will meet this weekend to discuss the implementation of Video Assisted Refereering (VAR) in England’s top flight.
VAR will be used in the Premier League for the first time from next season onwards. VAR has been rolled out steadily by FIFA over the last number of years.
It has been implemented in the lower leagues and cup competitions of England, but not the Premier League. Germany’s Bundesliga has had the system in place since the 2017 – 2018 season.
As well as that, the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia featured the replay review for the first time in a World Cup. The 2019 Women’s World Cup, currently in progress, features VAR as well. So, Premier League fans have had time to see how it works, although that might not be a positive.
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According to the BBC, the Premier League is leaning towards using video review sparingly. For example, the new rule about goalkeepers staying on their line for penalties, will be decided by on field officials.
However, that’s where they run into problems. The Premier League must balance the desire to preserve the flow of the game with the FIFA rules, which must be followed.
Fifa Referees’ Chief Pierluigi Collina outlined this to the BBC on Wednesday.
“What is written in the laws of the game has to be enforced in every (one) of the countries belonging to Fifa, and in every (one) of the competitions arranged by the member association of Fifa,” said Collina.
The big worry is delaying games, as we have seen happen during this summers’ Women’s World Cup.
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No doubt, there will be plenty of controversy for us to get into next season.
