VAR: Confusion or Clarity?

With football's lawmakers approving the decision to roll out the use of video assistant referee (VAR) technology in the ongoing edition of the World Cup, one of the biggest changes was explicitly descended on the sport in several years. Before this, the integration of goal-line technology had percolated the game.

Having unanimously received the nod of the International Football Association Board (IFAB) in Zurich in March and being publicly backed by its advocates – none more prominent than FIFA chief Gianni Infantino – this is the first time that video replays are being used in the World Cup. In addition to this, IFAB also sanctioned a fourth substitute in the case of extra time. Backtracking to the goal-line technology system, it was successfully employed in Brazil four years ago. Now, the technological aspect of this beautiful game has a new face in VAR – garnering its own share of blames and acclaim as 2018 FIFA World Cup marks the system's debut.

The video assistant referee system, better known in its abbreviated form VAR, is an addition implemented with the intention of reducing human error to reach more accurate decision-making in order to avoid unfortunate instances that might sum up to impact the outcome of matches. It allows the head referee of a match to review his/her decisions with the help of video footage along with assistant referees watching the action remotely who can also draw the former's attention to officiating mistakes or other missed serious incidents. As per the standard set by rules of FIFA, VAR can only intervene in the course of a match when the officials have made a "clear and obvious error" in one of the four key areas which can be reviewed, namely:

Goals: Arguably, a close offside decision is the most common reason for the VAR to be consulted after a goal has been scored and can be used to either award or rule out a goal. Also, if any violation to the buildup is encountered such as shirt-pulling etc, it can lead to the goals being cancelled out.

Penalty decisions: A highly problematic area. The spot-kick can be awarded or the decision could be reversed using VAR if there has been a "clear and obvious error" regarding the original decision.

Direct red card decisions: Violent conduct and threatening tackles can be penalised. Second yellow cards are not reviewable.

Mistaken identity: This implies a mistaken identity in awarding a red or yellow card.

Under any of these circumstances, VAR is called upon. The situation is then analysed by the VAR officials who are miked up to the on-field officials. The main referee, thus, can change his/her decision or choose to stick to it or can refer to the situation on a TV screen arranged on the sidelines. The system, before being exercised at the showpiece event in Russia, had been on trial extensively in major leagues across the globe. Although it has not been implemented in all big leagues, it has already made debuts in the Serie A and Bundesliga at the beginning of the 2017-18 season, Major league Soccer (MLS), A-League to name a few. While Spain's La Liga is expected to introduce VAR next season, the World's most watched league – English Premier League (PL), has no plans of adopting it anytime soon, it seems. Notably, the technology was also used in the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup, the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup and the 2016 FIFA Club World Cup too.

Needless to say, the usage of VAR has ushered a significant change into soccer. The fans, players, managers and others of the footballing fraternity have produced mixed reactions ever since it was first rolled out for experiment in the US Major League Soccer in 2016. In the June 2017 Confederations Cup, it acquired not only praise but also incurred much criticism regarding the controversies surrounding the tournament's final between Chile and Germany as its usefulness was questioned when it got things wrong. Serbian referee Milorad Mazic called for a video replay in a crucial moment of the match which saw Chile defender Gonzalo Jara booked for elbowing Germany's Timo Werner in the face much to the bewilderment of the spectators as it was initially considered a sending off moment.

Cut to the 2018 FIFA World Cup action, Iran coach Carlos Queiroz lambasted the video review after his side's 1-0 loss to La Roja in what he said was the overuse of the same to overturn close and debatable calls rather than being limited to only correcting obvious mistakes. Had Saeid Ezatolahi's goal against Spain not been ruled out for an offside, it could have scripted a whole different story for Iran at the World Cup as they could have made it beyond the group stage of the tournament for the very first time. The replay system was also a talking point in Portugal's matches, especially after Spain's Diego Costa appeared to push defender Pepe during his side's opening fixture against the Spaniards. Also, England's Harry Kane and Serbia's Aleksandar Mitrovic both appeared to be held in the box in their group-stage matches.

However, there is no denying the fact that VAR has been under the spotlight for many reasons comprising both the good and the bad. There have also been times when the video replay system undoubtedly raised more questions than provided answers. Still, there is a brighter side to reflect upon, especially when instances of referees committing huge blunders have proven to be game changers, to the lament of both players and managers in the post-match criticism. This is when the VAR can come to the rescue as a saviour. It can also bring to light the non-violent infringements off the ball which almost always go unpunished. Moreover, going by the stats, a total of 335 incidents were checked during the group stage – averaging seven per match – 14 on-field reviews made by referees were changed or overruled after being reviewed by VAR and three reviews were made by the VAR team on factual decisions. According to FIFA, referees called 95 per cent of the incidents correctly without VAR but taking the system into consideration for the first time at a major international tournament, improved that success rate to a commendable 99.3 per cent.

VAR though has its 'rights and wrongs' tethered to it which seemingly stem from the divided opinion in deference to the system as it has also courted various controversies and teeming problems, giving birth to many opponents. These have led to the surfacing of arguments such as voicing of concerns about video assistance disrupting the flow of the match – possibly, breaking a team's rhythm, as some games with VAR in use have produced five or six minutes of stoppage time come the end of the first-half or killed the spontaneous joy of goal celebrations due to the possibility of a review – looked upon essentially as damaging to the atmosphere in the stadium.

As football seems to be setting out on a journey whose destination is hard to predict, as of now, with the video assistant referee (VAR) system marking the latest stage in its evolution, it remains to be seen how football's governing bodies will manage the historically uneasy nexus of referees and technology. More so, VAR seems to be in the very middle of an ethical 'grey area' as proponents and opponents continue to argue whether it is good or bad for football. And, as far as its future usage is concerned, it has been on a rise in the domestic major leagues of the world but in order to translate the success of the goal-line technology and credibility, there still remain several kinks to be resolved as it is seemingly creating as much confusion as clarity.