Wired article on VAR

[Oldtimer]

https://www.wired.com/story/video-review-is-changing-soccer-and-no-one-seems-to-want-it/

[benito]

https://www.wired.com/story/video-review-is-changing-soccer-and-no-one-seems-to-want-it/

Thanks for the interesting read. I like the concept of VAR but I think they need to improve its implementation. I agree that slow motion replays should only be used on black/white decisions (offside, hand balls, ball crossing the line, etc) and not on judgement calls (red card vs yellow card) as fouls look much worse in slow motion.

[Globetrotter]

Interesting comments by former ref Salazar.

[MightyDM]

Thanks for posting.

I loathe VAR. It takes soccer’s spontaneous joy out of the game - and that’s the magic of the sport. Even when it is right it does this, because the first thought isn’t “goooooal” it’s “G” “oh is it going to be reviewed?” “oal”

It also purports to bring a level of accuracy to the game that it doesn’t have. Soccer isn’t precise. Penalties aren’t precise. Fouls aren’t precise. Red cards aren’t precise. They are all judgment calls.

Even offsides aren’t precise. Look at the Raheem Sterling disallowed goal. They measured from his armpit because arms cannot be offside (who knew that? I didn’t) and found him a hair offside. They measured for the armpits, supposedly. How can they possibly say it was offside when there is no way to precisely pick a part of an armpit? The line they drew was and is completely arbitrary - the call is ridiculous and only didn’t get controversy because City won convincingly without the goal.

They are now changing the rules to accommodate VAR, which is bizarre but in a twisted way makes sense. So all hand balls will be a penalty in the premier league, even if it isn’t intentional. This fundamentally changes the game - and makes no sense EXCEPT it gives an absolute rule that can be reviewed. They will need to change offside too (which isn’t as fundamental) to something equally clear ie is the players foot ahead. Or head. Or hand. Something more clear than armpit.

For me, this is all for the TV audience. It doesn’t destroy their experience and they can watch endless replays. In the stadium, it is different. VAR’s very existence creates the sense of non anticipation I mentioned earlier, and slows the game down. The farce of the WWC is only the most egregious example.

Leave it alone! There is a reason it is called the beautiful game.

[613reppingTFC]

^^ Totally agree with you on the Raheem Sterling goal. I was watching that and it just breaks up the play and enjoyment of the game. Everything about the way they measured from the armpit and the angle they take a look at it from can change the outcome of the attacker being offside.

[fergiejr]

I remember hearing something about the offside rule being that no part of the body that can be used for scoring can be in an offside position. So I guess that's the armpit :-) Possibly part of the shoulder?

If all handballs are penalties, you'll see more people chipping the ball towards the defender's hands. That's crappy IMO. Drogba used to do that a lot when playing with the Limpact. Handballs are judgement calls, and should be that way.