AIFF to introduce VAR in domestic leagues from 2025-26 Season

The Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system is set to make its debut in domestic club competitions starting from the 2025-26 season. All India Football Federation (AIFF) acting secretary general M Satyanarayan confirmed the eagerly awaited introduction of VAR, emphasising its potential to revolutionise the decision-making process in both the Indian Super League (ISL) and I-League.

VAR, initially deployed in FIFA events in the 2016-17 season, aims to assist referees in crucial game-changing situations. These include goals and related offences, penalty decisions and offences leading to a penalty, direct red card incidents, and cases of mistaken identity.

Satyanarayan spoke about the meticulous considerations in bringing VAR to Indian football to PTI. He revealed that a comprehensive study is currently underway, and a final decision is imminent.

The AIFF acting secretary general acknowledged the challenges, stating, "Introducing it next season might be difficult for the simple reason that FIFA has to approve the technology, there is a process. More than just getting the equipment, training of personnel takes a lot of time."

While the potential benefits are substantial, Satyanarayan acknowledged the financial implications of implementing VAR. He underscored that the costs associated with VAR would be a worthwhile investment for the ISL and I-League clubs, asserting, "The margins of victory or loss are sometimes 5 to 8 per cent, so we can get better results (with the use of VAR)."

VAR has already been adopted by numerous countries globally in their domestic club competitions following its debut in Australia and the United States. The technology has proven effective in minimising errors and ensuring fair play.

Notably, VAR made its domestic tournament debut in India football in March of this year during the Santosh Trophy third-place classification match between Services and Punjab in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Prior instances of VAR being used on Indian soil include the AFC Women's Asian Cup in January-February 2022 and the FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup in October last year.