Revealed: Key change to VAR set to come in next season as Premier League clubs prepare to vote on whether to scrap the controversial technology
- The technology has come under fire during a turbulent season of mistakes
- Wolves have tabled a vote for Premier League clubs on VAR to be held at the June General Meeting
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According to reports, VAR officials will be given guidelines to only intervene in Premier League matches when referees are ‘clearly wrong’ in a bid to fine-tune the use of the controversial technology.
Top English clubs will vote on whether to abolish the system at their AGM next month, after Wolves tabled a vote to abolish VAR five seasons after its introduction in 2019.
While it is unlikely that the vote will see the technology abandoned in an attempt to maintain consistency with the conditions clubs will face in European competitions, a number of changes will be introduced in an effort to improve after a season full errors.
Mail Sport reported last week that the Premier League will consider introducing in-stadium communications in a bid to provide clarity to spectators on the ground.
Semi-automated offside technology is also believed to be waiting in the wings for the green light following its successful use at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
VARs will reportedly be instructed to intervene only if the decision is ‘clearly wrong’
The system has been heavily criticized this season after a number of high-profile mistakes
Fans have long disputed whether the technology should be in use since its introduction in 2019
But there will be another change from the PGMOL as the organization tries to clarify exactly how the Stockley Park intervention should be carried out.
From the times, officials will be told by PGMOL chief Howard Webb that VAR should intervene when an on-field decision is ‘clearly wrong’, rather than considering the original threshold of a ‘clear and obvious error’.
It is believed that administrators believe the latter term has become redundant to the point of meaninglessness and that tightening the guidelines for when VAR as used on match day will help restore the status of the technology.
Webb is also reportedly keen to make use of a small group of specialist VARs, as the PGMOL has deployed this season in the wake of Liverpool’s wrongly ruled out goal through Luis Diaz at Tottenham in September.
Data showed a significant drop in the number of VAR errors in the aftermath of the mistake, from one error every 6.9 matches to one every 19 matches.
PGMOL chief Howard Webb is believed to be in favor of a light touch when it comes to using VAR
Wolves have called for a vote on scrapping VAR after a number of flashpoints this season
Luis Diaz’s wrongly disallowed goal against Tottenham forced PGMOL to use a smaller pool of VARs at Stockley Park
But despite preparing to introduce a raft of changes, the IFAB is not interested in letting Premier League clubs dictate terms.
It is thought that Wolves are proposing that VAR be limited only to factual decisions, including deciding offside and whether a foul has occurred inside or outside the penalty area, but the game’s lawmakers are unwilling to let clubs pick and choose.
Despite controversy surrounding the technology from a slew of supporters with different club loyalties, a Mail Sport poll last weekend found that 48 percent of fans would like to keep VAR in place.
Only 35 percent wanted the system scrapped, despite the increase in correct decisions in the Premier League from 10 percent to 96 percent in the years since VAR was introduced.