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The Pros and Cons of VAR in Football

The Pros and Cons of VAR in Football
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By

The Bridge Desk

Updated: 17 Jan 2023 5:45 AM GMT

Football is arguably the most popular sport on the planet. With over 3 billion fans across the globe, it's well ahead of its closest competitor. Sports betting has undoubtedly played a part in increasing football's appeal. Sportsbook bonuses, like the betwinner promo code, improve people's knowledge of the game in the hopes of getting lucky someday.

The use of technology in football has always been surrounded by controversy. For some, it's wrong and will ruin the game's fun factor. Others believe that it's right and will help on-field referees make better decisions. Before analyzing the pros and cons of this technology taking over football, it's important to understand what it is.

What is VAR?

VAR stands for video assistant referee. The video assistant referee watches the game on monitors offering various angles in a video operation room alongside assistants and helps the main referee make important decisions during the game.

If the VAR judges that an error has been made, they notify the referee, who goes ahead to make the final decision. In some cases, the referee may request to review the incident on a pitch-side monitor before making a decision.

The Pros of VAR

Despite naysayers' arguments, VAR has had some positive impacts on football. Some of the notable advantages of VAR are:

Better decision making

One wrong decision by a referee can ruin an entire tournament and even cost a player his career. That is why it's a good idea to have extra help.

With VAR technology, offsides and fouls in goal buildups can be easily detected. Cases of mistaken identities in awarding a card and potential red card offences are also reviewed by VARs. These benefits help to improve the overall quality and fairness of football matches.

Improved player discipline

Believe it or not, a lot of football players are mischievous. Some players purposely launch dangerous tackles when they feel the referee is not in a position to see them clearly. At the same time, others desperately dive inside the box in the hopes of fraudulently getting a penalty.

With the introduction of VAR technology, players know they're being closely watched, and such behavior would be punished.

Cons of VAR

The critiques of VAR technology have some solid arguing points about the technology and why it should be scrapped. The primary cons of VAR are:

It's not perfect

The final decision in a football game is always up to the center field referee, irrespective of what the VAR suggests. In factual cases like offside or a clear handball, using VAR is easy.

However, in subjective cases like fouls, the interpretation of the video evidence is up to the main referee, who can still make a wrong call. Some believe that VAR has generated as much confusion as it has helped clarify.

Time wastage

Discussing decisions with the VAR and reviewing incidents on a monitor takes up time that should be spent playing football. Although the time is added back in most cases, this is not true every time.

In addition to burning valuable time in a game, it also breaks up the game's momentum, especially for the team looking to score, as the players have to stand around and wait for the referee to come to a decision.

VAR technology is here to stay as its pros outweigh its cons. As time goes on, the technology will only get better.


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