Isuzu UTE A-League 2023/24 Finals Series will use Live Video Assistant Referee (Live VAR) reviews, which will be broadcast live, giving fans a detailed look at the decision-making processes that occur during such reviews.
This is for the first time in Australian football history and in the Asian Football League with the Live VAR system. In a similar process to that which occurred at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, when it’s recommended the on-field referee reviews an incident on the pitch-side monitor, that is when the new ‘live’ process will begin.
Fans present in stadiums and watching along at home will also have the benefit of hearing the match referee announce their final decisions as well as providing explanations as to why reviews were undertaken.
“As the first nation to adopt VAR in a top-tier national competition when we introduced it into the A-League in the 2016/17 season, Football Australia has always led globally in this space,” said Football Australia CEO James Johnson.
“We have continued to advocate globally for more innovation, and this evolution marks a significant step forward in Football Australia’s commitment to enhancing the clarity and experience of the fans, players, coaches, and match officials.”
“As we saw during last year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup where the same process and technology was introduced for the first time,” continued Johnson.
“We are confident that this new communication layer will improve the understanding of VAR decisions, positively impact the overall experience, and increase transparency in the process.”
With the technological enhancement set to debut in this weekend’s Elimination Final between Sydney FC and Macarthur FC, A-Leagues Commissioner Nick Garcia believes the introduction will benefit everybody in the game.
“It’s exciting to be able to introduce this technology with Football Australia in time for the Isuzu UTE A-League Men Finals Series to bring fans closer to the game we all love, whether they are in the stadium or watching from home.
“This technology will add more transparency to the referees’ decision-making process to give fans, players and coaches more insight on matchday, and what better stage to have this ready for than our 2024 Final Series.”
Credit Photo : SBS
