IT can be argued that a throw in off one foot gave the player an advantage in the case I alluded to before in this thread.
How can they use the World Cup as a testing ground for VAR (except in the few cases where the referee comes from a league that already uses VAR - i.e. Germany and Italy)?
Still working on absurdism, Albert? ... • Players allowed to dribble and play free kicks to themselves instead of kicking to a teammate 1. Yes. Whenever a free-kick is awarded, the team should be allowed to take it as quickly as possible. I hate it when a wall has to be arranged by the ref and opposing team outside the box. Indeed, why do we even allow the fouling team to make a wall in the first place? • Referees stop the clock whenever the ball is out of play 2. Yes. I believe 90 minutes with stoppages ends up around 60 minutes of play anyway, if I'm not mistaken. • Match length changed from 90 minutes to 60 minutes without stoppage time 3. Yes. See above. • Goal kicks don’t need to exit the penalty area 4. Yes. Why not? • The full-time whistle can only be called when the ball is out of play 5. Yes. So it might go over 60 minutes, but that's fine. The ref blowing full-time when a team is on the attack is annoying. • No follow-up attempts allowed off penalty kicks 6. No. It's less exciting. • Penalty goals are awarded for goal-line handballs" 7.Yes.
They have been testing it for a couple years now in the Club World Cup and the Confederations Cup. I assume that the crews that are selected for the World Cup will also be allowed to use it in friendlies leading up to the World Cup that are based in Russia. Also maybe some other Euro based friendlies. ( I know France has in friendlies )
Another ruled that was approved for the WC that I think should be mentioned is the 4th sub allowed in the knockouts if the game goes to extra periods. (I like that rule a lot.)
Yeah, its been used in a few short tournaments here and there. Fact is, most World Cup officiating crews will have had no experience working with VAR until right before the WC! This is quite scary considering that there is a pretty steep learning curve involved here. For e.g. in England, where VAR is just starting to be used, there's been an embarrassing misuse of VAR in almost every match where the technology was implemented!
I do expect some growing pains and awkwardness but I think it will only add to the drama in most circumstances and the entertainment value. Especially on this message board if the Youth Tournaments and the Confederations Cup were any indication.
I don't see the added entertainment value for fans actually in the stadium. But, hey, if it livens-up these message boards that's all that matters I suppose.
I guess. If they have an int'l data plan with their phone, that is. I was at the Uruguay v Italy match in 2014 and nobody knew that Suarez bit Chiellini until well after the final whistle. So not sure what you say happens in the real world. I'm hoping they will put the replays on the big screen like in Rugby Union, but I somehow doubt they will be that open and transparent.
Getting a bit like that even without VAR, especially at the home of big European clubs. Never understood the point of taking pictures or videos of something that is on TV, but a lot of people are doing that during matches now. Okay, a few pictures of yourself and friends with the field/players in the background is great. But just countless pictures/videos of the play on the field? Why? Missing the game you paid good money for just to post/brag on social media(?) [/rant]
The priority of the rule change is to get the right call on the field. The fans are secondary. As I said , there will be growing pains but it is for the good of the game. Hopefully they do a good job of updating the fans at the stadium but if they are really true blue fans they would know what VAR is all about.
The fans are secondary? It depends of what kind of fans you're talking about. This VAR crap is designed to attract the "faux" fan, you know, the "so called" fan that knows nothing about the game, you know, the one that applauds the unnecessary bicycle kick while taking a selfie, the one that couldn't tell you the score of the game they're watching, the one that wears the Real Madrid jersey in Hong Kong or Jakarta, the one that couldn't tell you what the offside law is if his life depended on it, et al. This is the fan Fifa wants, the one that goes to the stadium, buys jerseys, plays the Fifa video game, spends his money, and goes home happy no matter what happens on the pitch. As long as he sees 5 or 6 passes in a row without a "rude" defender interrupting, a couple of bicycle kicks and he has a couple of pics to post on social media he's satisfied. The "true blue" fan(as you put it) wants to see the Messis, Neymars but he also wants to watch the Chiellinis, the Diego Costas, the Godins, the Sergio Ramoses. The VAR will eventually get rid of all this kind of players. It'll be a bunch of ball jugglers running around the field. What makes Messi great is not his talent but the fact that he does it while being kicked, and pushed, and shoved all through the game. Football is a sport and that includes talent, but it also includes gamesmanship, intimidation, guts, brains, and much more. If I wanted to watch ball jugglers I'd go to the circus.
When it comes to rules fans and their feelings are secondary. Getting the right call on the field and justice are the priority.
I am a true blue fan. And I want players to adjust to the rules and to the technology accordingly. If they can't adjust their games to follow the rules and accumulate more red cards then that says more about their character and their abhorrent behavior than anything else.
Let's be clear that VAR does not guarantee the right result. It guarantees the right result with extreme selectivity. For example, the referee might decide to award a penalty for a ball that glances off an outstretched arm, very difficult to spot except in slo-mo. On the other hand the ref might ignore the five attacking fouls that led up to that moment. Or they might not. Who knows? VAR has been a scourge on MLS.
According to statistics Refs get calls right about 93 % of the time. Within their studies they have found that when VAR is applied the percentage goes up to about 99%. I do not see that as a bad thing. And I don't know how anyone can spin it into a bad thing,.
It's not that the call is wrong. It's that the decision-making is, by nature, heavily selective. We've seen examples in MLS where a goal was called back because of a single foul almost a minute behind the play. We've also seen plays with 5 or 6 fouls that get ignored. If you look close enough, and slo-mo enough, there could be a foul on every single play. VAR leads to far more subjectivity and discretion than open play. (I'd also add my personal objection about VAR is that we've now got different rules of the game based on wealth. For example, NPSL can't afford VAR so the rules of the game are now different than in MLS. That offends my democratic sensibilities.)
The statistics show that refs get calls right at a good rate and this technology will only help it get better. When it comes to subjectivity that is another issue and it can be applied to all aspects of life and juficilal decisions. What the issue is here is can VAR improve the game when it comes to obvious mistakes in goal situations, Penalties, Red Cards, mistaken idenity, etc. The answer so far has been a resounding yes.
Why am I not surprised that most opponents of VAR are from nations that like to cheat to win games like Uruguay... Very good, beneficial changes. Especially the 90 minutes. At last an end to time-wasting.