VAR will be used at Russia World Cup, says FIFA

[rooster59]

VAR will be used at Russia World Cup, says FIFA

 

A soccer ball with the sign of the FIFA World Cup 2018 is seen before the Adidas annual news conference in Herzogenaurach, Germany March 14, 2018. REUTERS/Michael Dalder

 

BOGOTA (Reuters) - Video assistant referees (VARs) will be used at the World Cup for the first time in this year's finals in Russia, FIFA president Gianni Infantino said on Friday, and teams will be allowed a fourth substitute in matches that go to extra-time.

 

The use of the VAR system was approved earlier this month by the rule-making body IFAB, despite controversy in some of the competitions in which it has been trialled over the time taken to make decisions and lack of information for spectators.

 

"We are going to have our first World Cup with video assisted refereeing," Infantino told reporters after a meeting of the FIFA Council.

 

"This has been adopted and approved and we are extremely happy with that decision. It's an essential decision, very important and historical decision."

 

The system that allows off-pitch referees to re-examine a decision or an incident referred to them by the match official has been used in Germany's Bundesliga and Italy's Serie A this season and trialled in some English FA and League Cup games.

 

Infantino said VAR had been shown to reduce the number of refereeing mistakes in matches where it has been used and would help football become "a fairer and more transparent sport".

 

"It's not possible that, in 2018, everyone in the stadium and their living room knows if a referee has made a big mistake or not, and the only one who doesn't know is the referee," Infantino added.

 

Infantino had repeatedly promised that VAR would be used at the June 14-July 15 World Cup and has made it one of his priorities since being elected FIFA chief in February, 2016.

 

FIFA later said in a statement that, where matches went to extra-time, teams would be allowed a fourth substitute, a rule change also approved by IFAB.

 

NO CONCERNS

 

Infantino said the hosts for the 2026 World Cup, to be decided at the FIFA Congress in Moscow in June, would be chosen in an open vote by its member national associations and details of how they voted would be published.

 

He confirmed that there were two candidates -- Morocco against a joint bid from the United States, Canada and Mexico.

 

Both bids will be evaluated first by a task force and disqualified if they did not meet FIFA's technical criteria.

 

Infantino also said he did not have any concerns surrounding political issues involving Russia.

 

Relations between Britain and Russia have crashed to a post-Cold War low after over an attack involving a military-grade nerve agent on English soil.

 

Moscow has denied any involvement in the attempted murder of former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter.

 

However, Britain, the United States, Germany and France on Thursday jointly called on Russia to explain the attack.

 

Some officials have said Britain may reconsider the attendance of official representatives at the World Cup, with England having qualified for the tournament.

 

"We are not worried at all, we are here to organise a football tournament, we are here to organise the most important football and social event in the world, so we believe football can bring people together," Infantino said.

 

"I know the Russian people are looking forward to welcoming people from all over the world. Political issues we leave to the politicians."

 

FIFA has also expanded the World Cup from 32 to 48 teams, starting from the 2026 tournament, under Infantino's presidency but the Swiss denied he was trying to do too much, too soon.

 

"For years, we have been criticised for not doing things," he said. "I was elected to do things, not to sit on my chair and inaugurate football pitches."

 

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2018-03-17

[Samui Bodoh]

"...Video assistant referees (VARs) will be used at the World Cup for the first time in this year's finals in Russia..."

 

While I like to see the game utilize the most modern tech available and to see a fairer game being called...

 

...I can't help but wonder if Russia will try to hack the system.

 

[YetAnother]

48 minutes ago, rooster59 said:

The system that allows off-pitch referees to re-examine a decision or an incident referred to them by the match official has been used in Germany's Bundesliga and Italy's Serie A this season and trialled in some English FA and League Cup games.

ok, might help in the calls made on the field; what about all the non-calls ? those that are missed ?

[mtls2005]

Here I was thinking VAR was some sort of nerve agent detection system? Or PED testing system?

 

 

[blazes]

It will give me the chance to watch Breaking Bad again while they do their VAR business.

Edited March 17, 2018 by blazes

[CharlesSwann]

No need for this. It detracts more than it adds and It's just another example of humans selling their souls to technology.

Referees' mistakes are a wildcard that form an essential part of the game, and serve especially to shake up dull games where the teams are bottling it so that nobody is even playing properly - seems to be the modern disease.

If they want to win, then just need to play consistently well, no wheedling and whining. If a decision is genuinely unfair to one team, they should accept it with dignity - luck always averages itself out in any case.