VAR

[Footy-Vill]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cwyj7y89yq4o

Article on VAR 24/25

[Footy-Vill]

Daily Telegraph
Top-flight managers block plan to let referees announce VAR calls  live in stadiums
Exclusive: Proposal dropped as managers insist it would mean decisions take even longer in private meeting with referees chief Howard Webb

Premier League managers told Howard Webb in a private meeting last month that they did not want the new-season innovation of referees announcing VAR decisions live on-mic to crowds in stadiums and the proposal has been dropped.

Managers invited to the annual private briefing with referee chief Webb and Premier League chief football officer Tony Scholes said that they thought the new measure – aimed at explaining VAR decisions to match-going crowds – would add even more time to the process.

The Premier League managers’ main complaint around VAR, at the meetings in early July, was that it already took too long to reach decisions.

Previously, referees and assistants had been told that they would be expected to announce decisions live to crowds this season. But when the Premier League revealed its suite of new measures today, live referee in-stadium announcements were not among them.

Scholes told the BBC this week that there would “potentially” be a pilot scheme later in the season but with other changes the Premier League “don’t want to put additional pressure on the referees”

Instead, the Premier League announced other improvements to VAR. There will be more on-screen messaging and replays of incidents where relevant. For those not at stadiums, the league will also provide live explanations on social media.

The managers are invited by the referees’ body PGMOL to attend one of two private meetings held regionally at the start of July. In private they can discuss proposed changes to protocol and changes brought in by Ifab, the governing body that controls the game’s laws.

The Premier League declined to comment on the in-stadium announcements. It is understood that there are also other issues with its practicality.

The officials were also unhappy with the prospect of in-stadium announcements, having first been told that it would be their decision as to whether the new measure was introduced. It has been used in Major League Soccer and at the Fifa Women’s World Cup but the prospect of it was not popular among PGMOL select group one officials.

[Footy-Vill]

Managers told to keep lid on VAR criticism
Meanwhile the Premier League has told managers, players and chief executives to keep a lid on ferocious criticism of VAR which it says damages the competition.

After a year in which Arsenal released an unprompted statement saying refereeing was “unacceptable” and Wolverhampton Wanderers launched a bid to abandon the technology, the league is hoping issues have now been addressed.

In a series of private meetings, including those with managers, the clubs are understood to have been told it is their prerogative to criticise subjective decisions in public if they disagree with them. But after extensive efforts to improve the technology in partnership with the clubs, they have been urged to exert caution before going on the offensive about the technology in general.

Semi-automated offside technology is also being introduced in the coming months and a new “referee’s call” mantra has been adopted, effectively giving more emphasis than ever for referees to follow their instincts. The VAR will be under stricter orders than ever not to undermine subjective on-field calls.

Premier League records show the number of correct decisions in matches is at 96 per cent compared to 82 per cent before VAR was introduced. There were only five incorrect VAR interventions last season, compared to 105 correct calls – an improvement on 2022-23, with 11 wrong VAR decisions to 105 which were right.

In VAR’s sixth season in the top tier, clubs are optimistic they will get quicker decisions, make fewer interventions and put more emphasis on backing the referee’s judgement.

[cdbearsfan]

I wonder if maybe this could be merged with the semi-automated offside and existing VAR threads?

[Accent Guy]

Should we be worried here?

Apparently, the referee will be given more control over decisions and that concerns me when it comes to offsides. We saw in pre-season that our high line is only effective against the offside trap if VAR is present. Club America's goals would have been ruled out for example, had VAR been used.

I am not sure if it includes offsides but if the new rule does affect them, we may see us concede quite a lot more goals given the way we play.

[edgysatsuma89]

I'm not sure what you are saying, what do you think refs could now do to alter how offside decisions are made?

[Accent Guy]

I'm not sure what you are saying, what do you think refs could now do to alter how offside decisions are made?

I am saying that if the onfield officials think the goal is fine then it sems it is likely to stand this season instead of going to VAR. It showed last season just how much we rely on VAR to play our high line. Dito pre-season, where many of the goals we conceded would have been ruled out had VAR been used.

[edgysatsuma89]

I'm not sure what you are saying, what do you think refs could now do to alter how offside decisions are made?

I am saying that if the onfield officials think the goal is fine then it sems it is likely to stand this season instead of going to VAR. It showed last season just how much we rely on VAR to play our high line. Dito pre-season, where many of the goals we conceded would have been ruled out had VAR been used.

They're not going to go by offside decisions on the pitch when it has been shown to be offside on VAR, I'm not sure why you would think otherwise.

[Nev]

It won't work.

Managers, players, fans and pundits will still question semi automated decisions and the argument will continue.

[Legion]

Clearly not a penalty today.

[cdbearsfan]

Disagree. I'd have been going mad if Villa hadn't got a penalty for that.

[Legion]

Cash got the ball first.

[Somniloquism]

Anyone want to merge this with the VAR 2024 thread?

The Twitter thing is useless as well. I thought it was supposed to be giving real time reasoning for the decisions being as the refs were not miked up. All it states was:

#WHUAVL – 35’

The referee awarded a penalty for a foul by Cash on Souček. The VAR checked and confirmed the referee’s call.

Which is no explanation at all and was fucking obvious.

[Legion]

Can't see it...

[Accent Guy]

The irony of the poll is that VAR is seemingly against VAR