FIFA remains determined to use a robot touchline referee for the 2022 World Cup. FIFA President Gianni Infantino is aiming to introduce a “semi-automatic” refereeing system for the World Cup. This referee will consist of 10 cameras to track each player’s 29 physical points and has been tested in the Club World Cup won by Liverpool. With all indications that the technology is working as it should and will be better than the currently approved VAR system, it will be urgently reviewed at the annual meeting of the Board of Directors of the International Federation next Monday. This means that England’s opening match against Iran on 21 November will only be the second match to feature the technology. But the final decision will be made by FIFA after a full analysis of the test data.
For his part, FIFA President Pierluigi Collina said: “The referees and assistant referees continue to be responsible for making decisions on the playing field. Technology only gives them valuable support to make better and faster decisions, especially when offside decisions are difficult. .”
Translated by Bernard Al Tayyar