SEOUL: Football’s video assistant referees come in for a further international trial in the World Under-20 Cup which launches this weekend in South Korea writes KEIR RADNEDGE.

This will be the first time the VAR system as been run at a FIFA youth tournament, helping match officials on decisions regarding four specific situations: goals, penalties, red card incidents and player identity.

Daejon stages the Opening Match between Venezuela and Germany tomorrow/Saturday, followed within hours by Argentina v England, Vanuatu v Mexico and hosts South Korea v Guinea.

Johannes Holzmuller, FIFA’s head of football technology innovation, said: “The referee can change his decisions after receiving the information from the video operations room. He can also check the replay in person to make a decision but the final decision can be made only by the referee.”

Broadcast feeds

Video assistant referees will have access to the broadcast feeds inside the video operations room, enabling them to provide the referee with live feedback.

Massimo Busacca, FIFA’s head of refereeing, said: “Qualified match officials, who are equally as experienced as the referee, will work inside the video operations room, where two VARs will support the referee in the process of reviewing the video clips.

“In terms of fair play, VAR can make a huge difference through prevention. People will know there’s a camera there, so they have to stop.

“I think one of the most important impacts of VAR will be not seeing any more clear mistakes – such as simulation, or a team winning with a clear error. So, I think this will be one of its biggest implementations and have an impact on this competition.”

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