The Creation of VAR: improvement or failure?

VAR is making its entrance into soccer, but questions to whether or not it will benefit the game still remain.

Over the past several years, many spectators and players have stated that they can’t depend on the sole decisions of referees and assistants. In response to their complaints, the IFAB (International Football Association Board) decided to implement VAR, also known as Video Assistant Referee, a system with the intention of improving games in terms of quality and fairness. VAR alerts the referee when they’ve make a mistake making a call on the playing field. This system has been in use for about three years so far.

Many professional sports games have utilized similar video assistant systems when reviewing clips of gameplay, but VAR is a system unique to soccer. However, because it is still considered an experimental feature, only several major soccer leagues have implemented this system into their games. These leagues include the Bundesliga (Germany), Serie A (Italy), Ligue 1 (France), and the MLS (USA). More recently, VAR has been used in several professional soccer competitions, such as the 2018 World Cup and this year’s UEFA Champions League.

The VAR system is used to evaluate certain situations during a match. The referee is only allowed to review clips that result in either penalities, goals, red cards, or mistaken identities. However, even if the referee rewatches a particular incident, it is ultimately still the referee’s choice whether he wants to reverse or to remain with his original decision.

Although VAR initially seemed to be a flawless new addition to the game, this new innovation has created a divide between those who favor it and those who believe it detracts from the games. Luis Garcia, a retired soccer player, showed his discomfort towards the VAR system by stating, “VAR makes players lose the focus of the game.” Samantha Quek, a hockey player, explained her concerns about implementing VAR into professional soccer, explaining, “[An] annoying side effect of [the] VAR system… is [that] every player [rushes to] the ref and asks him to look at it- just in case.” On the other hand, John Arne Riise, another retired soccer player, shared a more positive opinion on VAR, stating, “Love VAR! Brilliant and well used… a lot less things that [will] ruin the game in the future.”

With the VAR system currently in use and still improving, there will be more divisive opinions and questions about this controversial topic, but for the time being, FIFA doesn’t seem to have any interest in dealing with the matter. As time progresses, the in-game technology will improve and so will the quality of the games.

Featured image- Assistants in the VAR room checking for mistakes in a match Courtesy of FIFA

by Andy Kim