He VAR won his first battle in European football after the vote that took place in the Premier League during the last hours: will continue to use Video Referee Assistance after the presentation made days ago by Wolverhampton with the aim of eliminating this technological tool.
The body that brings together the 20 teams that compete in the First Division of England announced in the last few hours that the vote was in favor of continuing to apply the VAR, although it also “It was agreed that improvements should be made for the benefit of the game and the fans”.
In the score released by the Premier on its official site, there are six “key areas” on which they will work to polish the tool:
1) Maintain a high threshold for VAR intervention to achieve greater consistency and fewer interruptions to the development of the game.
2) Reducing delays in play, primarily through the introduction of semi-automated offside technology (SAOT) and maintaining a high threshold for VAR intervention.
3) Improve the fan experience by reducing delays, in-stadium referee announcements following a post-VAR decision change and, where possible, increasing the provision of large screen replays that include all VAR interventions.
4) Work with the PGMOL to implement more robust VAR training to improve consistency, emphasizing the speed of the process while preserving accuracy.
5) Increase transparency and communication around VAR, including greater communication from the Premier League Match Center and through broadcast programs such as Match Officials Mic’d Up.
6) Carrying out a VAR communication campaign aimed at fans and interested parties, which will seek to further clarify the role of VAR in the game to participants and supporters.
At the same time that they considered the inclusion of semi-automatic offside, they also assured that both the Premier League and the PGMOL (the body responsible for English referees) “will continue to pressure the IFAB to allow greater flexibility in the Laws of the Game to allow live video and audio broadcasting during VAR reviews”.
It must be taken into account that Wolverhampton raised this vote weeks ago under the argument that “the price we are paying for a small increase in accuracy goes against the spirit of our game”. And he highlighted a series of shortcomings that, in his view, harmed the normal development of the English competition.
However, they needed a majority for the motion to become law: a favorable vote of at least 14 clubs supporting their position of eliminating VAR. According to the British newspaper The Sun, the vote at the AGM in Harrogate came out 19-1: only Wolverhampton voted positively for his presentation.
THE PREMIER LEAGUE STATEMENT
Premier League clubs voted today in favor of continuing to apply VAR in the Premier League.
Although VAR allows for more accurate decisions, it was agreed that improvements must be made for the benefit of the game and the fans.
As part of the discussions at the Annual General Meeting, it was agreed that PGMOL, the Premier League and the clubs have an important role to play in improving the system and its reputation.
As part of the ongoing work to improve VAR, six key areas were focused on as part of discussions with clubs:
1) Maintain a high threshold for VAR intervention to achieve greater consistency and fewer interruptions to the development of the game.
2) Reducing delays in play, primarily through the introduction of semi-automated offside technology (SAOT) and maintaining a high threshold for VAR intervention.
3) Improve the fan experience by reducing delays, in-stadium referee announcements following a post-VAR decision change and, where possible, increasing the provision of large screen replays including all VAR interventions.
4) Work with the PGMOL to implement more robust VAR training to improve consistency, emphasizing the speed of the process while preserving accuracy.
5) Increase transparency and communication around VAR, including greater communication from the Premier League Match Center and through broadcast programs such as Match Officials Mic’d Up.
6) The implementation of a communication campaign on VAR aimed at fans and interested parties, which will seek to further clarify the role of VAR in the game to participants and followers.
It was confirmed in April that semi-automated offside technology will be introduced in autumn 2024.
The technology will provide faster and more consistent placement of the virtual offside line, based on optical player tracking, and produce high-quality broadcast graphics to ensure a better in-stadium and broadcast experience for fans.
The Premier League and PGMOL will continue to lobby the IFAB to allow greater flexibility in the Laws of the Game to allow live video and audio broadcasting during VAR reviews.
