On the heels of the kick-off workshop in the Netherlands in May, International Football Association Board (IFAB) and Major League Soccer (MLS) will host a second workshop experimenting with the implementation of video assistant referees (VARs).
The workshop will take place from July 19-21 in New Jersey and will be attended by more than 20 leagues and associations across the globe, stretching all the way to Australia.
This should be no surprise to the avid sport watcher as instant replay has been responsible for changing the outcome of key sport calls for years. You see it the most in the NFL. Remember the Tuck Rule, or the Fail Mary? FIFA is just trying to avoid a situation like Jim Joyce’s blown call in Detroit Tigers, Armando Galarraga’s near perfect game.
The main focus of the workshop will be tracking the use of VARs in a “live” environment. The test will take place at Red Bull Arena using presentations and practical match setting demonstrations. Here, attendees will learn more about the referees and how they should communicate with one another in order to come to a decision on the four incidents included in the experiment protocol:
1. Goals scored
2. Penalty decisions
3. Direct red card incidents
4. Mistaken identities
In June, technology providers met in Zurich, Switzerland, the headquarters of FIFA, to discuss the experimental games. “Today’s meeting was an opportunity to update the providers on the project and discuss ways to potentially standardize VAR equipment. We also informed them about FIFA’s decision to install a VAR training center at our headquarters here in Zurich. We are looking to set it up in the next months and are inviting different providers from around the world to showcase their technology at the facility,” said Head of FIFA’s Football Technology Innovation Department, Johannes Holzmüller.
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The next step after meeting in Switzerland, was announcing the six competitions which, in turn, led to the MLS’ workshop.
The workshop will also be key in educating the referees. “Offline” experiments have been said to be on the way this year and will give VARs the chance to familiarize themselves with setup, assessing video replays and practice making calls without communication.
Along with the MLS workshop, the IFAB and FIFA may set up matches or tournaments that will be used as friendly matches between those clubs participating in the FIFA Club World Cup Japan in December 2016.
The IFAB is the authorized body which will decide on a change to the Laws of the Game if they deem replay to be effective after testing. Until then, the IFAB will supervise each and every experiment along the way until its presumed decision in 2018 or by the latest, 2019.
FIFA believes they are on track to sealing the deal with instant replay and that should be noted as a valuable asset. An official’s job is already hard enough, why not make it easier?