The much-needed refereeing assistance system that football fans had been crying out for is finally here and it has completely transformed the whole language of football heard in conversations up and down the country. Emotionally charged debates centred around topics such as ‘clear and obvious’, ‘unseen incidents’ and ‘toenail offside’ are occurring more often—almost after every game. If you have not been following football for the past few years, you would be forgiven to think these arguments are those which might belong in a legal court room.
The Video Assistance Refereeing (VAR) system was finally introduced in the Premier League in the 2019/20 season after the clubs voted for the change in 2018. Considering how long video technology has been around in other sports, its lack of presence in football always seemed miles behind. Sports like rugby, tennis, and cricket have been applying video technology to assist on-field referees/umpires for more than a decade now. Therefore it was only a matter of time before the most watched sport in the world, football, would also follow suit and begin the incorporation of technology in their refereeing protocols.
It would be fair to say that every passionate football fan at some point or another has felt strongly about decisions made on the field and felt enraged at detrimental calls made by on-field referees which cost their beloved teams irreversible moments. Often, the only option is to merely revisit memories with questions of ‘what ifs’ – like Thierry Henry’s last minute handball in the 2009 World Cup qualifier games against Northern Ireland and Lampard’s ‘ghost goal’ against Germany in the World Cup 2010. We thought the solution was finally here, fans could now enjoy football with a promise of a better refereeing system which could improve the quality of the debate around the sport.
A simple language to understand
The debate around VAR also has another side. Some believe football isn’t like any other sport; the unique and universal popularity of the sport stems from the fact that it is extremely easy to understand. The concept of football transcends languages and regions. Anyone around the world can tune into a game and understand roughly what is happening at any given time during those 90 minutes within a few moments of watching the sport.
It is a free-flowing game designed to have little disruptions that can sway the changing momentums that occur within a competitive game taking place between two well-matched teams. Many believe this sense of universality is where the strength and the appeal of the sport lies. The VAR naysayers also pose questions on how a game with extremely subjective refereeing, which differ from game to game, could utilise technology to adjudicate matches with universal consistency.
Although it appears that the wider football community is seemingly already on board, there was strong resistance from FIFA and their controversial former president Sepp Blatter towards VAR. Its use was debated by pundits and football talk shows after every major tournament held within the last decade. Then in 2015, the FIFA corruption scandal rocked the football world. Although it came as no surprise to football fans who diligently follow the sport, the details that emerged from this scandal cast a doubt on all decisions made by FIFA.
Sceptical introduction of VAR
It became apparent that VAR would begin to be trialled in different leagues, potentially becoming an integral part of the future of football. Premier League fans had already seen technology make positive changes to the game with the introduction of goal-line technology which was unanimously praised in its application.
The first worldwide advertisement of VAR came in the FIFA 2018 World Cup. Instantly. it was clear to see as VAR’s impact was not subtle; in fact, it became the central talking point of the tournament as there were 29 penalties awarded during this tournament. The previous record since the format was expanded to include 32 teams had stood at 18 penalties in the 2002 World Cup.
Although the impact of video assistance on the tournament was blatantly apparent, it was seen as somewhat of a favourable step forward in the sport. VAR had not been a cause of any significant major controversial decision and had come out of the tournament with its reputation unscathed.
It was therefore a model which was imminent for the Premier League. Since its introduction, it has possibly been the most polarizing aspect of the game that has been administered by the English Football Association since their formation.
Consistently inconsistent and subjective
The sceptics, who had warned of the dangers of VAR for years, would now claim to have foreseen the controversies that would come along with the technology. But even they might not have predicted the level of outcry and grievances it has already caused fans and personals within the league at such an early point of its adoption. A poll carried out by Savanta ComRes, which included 2,100 fans, showed that 44% of the fans actually think that VAR has made football worse compared to only 30% of the fans who think that it has improved the game. Almost half the of fans questioned believed that the introduction of VAR has made football less exciting.
The major grievance surrounding its criticism comes from the obvious inconsistencies that can be witnessed by spectators. It wouldn’t be an uncommon occurrence to watch multiple Premier League games within the same day applying the technology to similar incidents with two different outcomes. The reputation of the English Football Association has also been seriously scrutinised for the role it has played in the implementation of VAR during games. A technology which was widely believed to provide more protection for the officials can even be attributed to fuel the fire for the horrific social media abuse faced by officials such as Mike Dean.
Whilst it is apparent for now that VAR has had a massive impact on football, it is important to question whether it has given the aggrieved fans of the past the justice they had hoped for. There is little doubt that as time goes on video technology will continue to be finetuned as it has been done in all other sports to achieve higher consistency levels. However, will this new addition take away from the spirt and essence of the sport?
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