Football set to copy completely different sport's approach to VAR with managers to be given massive new responsibility

The Irish Sun

3 days ago

FOOTBALL looks set to introduce a cricket and tennis-style challenge system that will completely transform VAR.
This new version of VAR allows managers to request reviews on key decisions such as goals, penalties, direct red cards, and cases of mistaken identity.
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Football Video Support (FVS) will see referees be asked to review decisions by managers
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The Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) is reportedly introducing an exciting new 'low cost' review system called Football Video Support (FVS) to Spain's third tier this season.
Under FVS each team gets two reviews per game, and if a challenge is successful, they keep it for later use — if not, they lose that chance.
Managers could order a review by twirling their finger in the air and giving the fourth official a review card showing the type of decision being challenged.
The referee then consults a pitch-side monitor to reassess the incident, speeding up the process and reducing the costs and chaos associated with traditional VAR.
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Several major football leagues now utilise semi-automated offside technology (SAOT), including the
Premier League, Champions League, Serie A,
and
LaLiga.
Meanwhile, Spain's top women's league, Liga F, could approve the FVS system as soon as this week, potentially becoming the first major league to fully adopt it.
This would mark a significant step toward modernising officiating in women's football, with the Women's Super League currently operating without VAR.
If FVS proves effective, LaLiga might consider implementing it too, which could see calls for it to be brought to the Prem.
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The tennis challenge system is called Hawk-Eye, and it's used to review line calls during matches
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Fifa referees chief Pierluigi Collina revealed that the system had already made its debut during last year's Blue Stars/Fifa Youth Cup in Zurich.
He told national associations during Fifa's annual congress in Bangkok that the outcome had been 'very, very positive'.
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There have already been calls for a challenge system in the Premier League, amid the opposition to the VAR system that currently reviews every match-changing incident.
One of the biggest fans of an
Speaking on the
"But I think you either scrap the rest of it or, more realistically, you take it to an appeal system.
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Gary Lineker has called for a challenge-system for years
"You limit the amount of times that VAR can interfere. It can not intervene unless someone appeals.
"Maybe one appeal a half, but it stops VAR coming into every possible corner that comes in."
Prem chiefs tried to sort some of the problems out last season, when they rolled out semi-automated offside technology for the final seven rounds of top flight games.