FIFA president Gianni Infantino welcomed the historic test of video replays to help the referee in France’s friendly win over Italy in Bari, but insisted if any technological changes are eventually introduced they “will not cannibalise our game”.
The first official “semi-live” Video Assistant Referees (VAR) test received a positive response after Thursday night’s match, with Dutch referee Bjorn Kuipers using radio communications to assist in the event of a clear error in a match-changing decision or a serious missed incident.
Although there were no on-field reviews by the officials, the VAR helped Kuipers correctly show a yellow card to Djibril Sidibe for a foul on Italian midfielder Daniele De Rossi rather than a red, and later rule that there was no penalty for a claimed handball by France defender Layvin Kurzawa.
In March the body that oversees the laws of the game, the International Football Association Board (IFAB), gave the green light to video trials, where referees would be able to call on video assistance for contentious goals, penalties, red cards and cases of mistaken identity.
The assistant referees will not be substituted by VAR or any other technology... we will not cannibalise our game- Gianni Infantino
Global tests
Experiments continue to be held around several national competitions this season, including the Bundesliga and Serie A, as well as Major League Soccer in the US.
At present, the only technology used by referees is the goalline system which determines whether the ball has crossed the line.
While Infantino has always been hopeful of seeing the VAR system in place at the 2018 World Cup in Russia, the FIFA president is clear that the flow of the game must not be disrupted.
“With VAR, we help the referees and we protect the game,” Infantino said at a news conference in Italy yesterday.
“We turned a new page in football’s history book.
“After this very pleasant experience, we will see where the VAR tests are leading us. We need more tests. We will continue with testing until 2018 when the IFAB will decide on VAR.”
However, Infantino stressed the decision of the on-field officials must never be eroded.
He added: “The assistant referees will not be substituted by VAR or any other technology... we will not cannibalise our game.
“We have to make sure that only clear mistakes are being reviewed by the VARs. Clear mistakes can always happen, but in the future they can be avoided.
“This way, FIFA can build trust between the fans and the game.
“Incidents where millions of fans witness a clear mistake in a game-changing situation but the referees can’t react will be strongly minimised in the future.”
FIFA have scheduled the next VAR test for the international match between Italy and Germany on November 15.