GIANNI INFANTINO has expressed his delight after Fifa approved of the use of VAR in this summer’s World Cup in Russia.
A Fifa ruling in Colombia on Friday approved of the decision, after the International Football Association Board reached a unanimous decision to introduce the technology earlier this month.
Having been trialled in the Club World Cup in 2016, the Confederations Cup in 2017 and English, German and Italian cup games, VAR will now be used on the grand stage in Russia.
Speaking of the decision, Fifa president Infantino said: “We need to live with the times.
“We wanted to give the referees tools so they can make better decisions, and in the World Cup some very important decisions are made.
“It’s not possible that in 2018 everyone in their living room knows a few seconds after the play whether a referee has made a mistake and the referee doesn’t.
“I was sceptical at first, but without trying you cannot know what it’s worth.
“Without VAR, a referee can make one important mistake every three matches. With VAR, the figures we have seen from the trials that have been held show that a big mistake is made once every 19 matches.”
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VAR is not expected to be used in the Premier League next season, while UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin recently revealed it will not be used in next campaign’s Champions League.
He said: “Nobody knows exactly how VAR will work. There is already a lot of confusion.
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“I am not at all against it but we must better explain when it will be used. We will see at the World Cup.”
However, Ligue 1 and La Liga will use the technology from next season, while the Bundesliga will vote whether to use the technology on March 22.
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