VAR change enforced by FIFA just hours before England vs Argentina | Football | Sport
FIFA have ruled that Video Assistant Referees (VAR) will now be placed on-site amid growing criticism. The governing body have moved to take the officials away from their Dallas-base and have them closer to the action in a bid to combat scrutiny.
Those operating the technology will now be in the vicinity of the semi-final and final grounds with the World Cup at the business end. England will now witness the change first-hand when they take on Argentina in Atlanta on Wednesday while France’s showdown with Spain in Dallas was the first to witness the switch. The Three Lions saw their penalty controversially ruled out after Clement Turpin was instructed to go to the monitor and overturn his decision after Djed Spence was adjudged to have initiated the contact.
Spain overpowered Didier Deschamps side as they went in search of a third successive World Cup final. A reckless challenge from Lucas Digne on Lamine Yamal allowed Mikel Oyarzabal to convert from the spot before Pedro Porro combined with Dani Olmo to double the lead.
Referee Ivan Barton was largely untroubled and didn’t require the intervention of the technology. Though, VAR was accused of micro-officiating the game when Ousmane Dembele saw his free-kick overturned after Fabian Ruiz was adjudged to have fouled. It was claimed by BBC Sport’s Dale Johnson that the referee’s assistant recommended the change.
Dan Hunt, Owner of FC Dallas and FIFA World Cup Organising Committee member said: “There’s a lot of drama that unfolds in these games. And look, when you are asking only four officials to manage what’s going on on the field, it’s very difficult on a field that’s much bigger than an American football field.
“I’m glad that there’s gonna be on-site. I don’t know what that communication’s gonna look like.”
England witnessed their penalty overturned despite Djed Spence appearing to be brought down inside the box by a Norwegian defender.
Meanwhile, Egypt had a goal ruled out for a foul in the build-up to what would have been a two-goal advantage through Ziko, with officials determining that Lisandro Martinez had been fouled at the start of the passage of play.
Prior to the quarter-final stage, where the arrangement was trialled at a select number of matches, VAR officials had been operating from a central hub at the International Broadcast Centre in Dallas, regardless of where each game was taking place. This development marks a considerable shift in how the tournament’s review system operates, arriving amid intense scrutiny of refereeing standards as the competition approaches its most crucial remaining fixtures.
The newly-deployed on-site officials will serve as a contingency measure should any communication or technical issues arise Ivan Barton was named referee for the highly-anticipated encounter between Spain and France. Poland’s Tomasz Kwiatkowski was responsible as the chief VAR official. A vastly experienced video specialist, he oversaw the VAR operation for the 2022 World Cup final between France and Argentina.
