In the future, the DFB wants to explain controversial decisions regarding video evidence in a TV format. In England there are now new discussions about general publication of radio traffic.
“There are concrete discussions and plans to develop a video format in which the decisions of the referees in interaction with the video assistant will be explained.”said Alex Feuerherdt, media spokesman for DFB Schiri GmbH in an interview with Sportschau. “It should be an explanatory format in which the radio traffic is also played.”
Alex Feuerherdt, media spokesman for DFB Schiri GmbH
England and Italy deliver different VAR shows
Such explanations exist, for example, in England and Italy. However, these are different. In Italy, the streaming service DAZN shows controversial scenes every week after match days under the title “Open VAR” and explains them with radio traffic and experts.
In England, the Sky channel shows the show “Match Officials Mic’d up“, which, however, only comes once a month. In what exact format, with which channel and with what frequency the DFB will appear with such videos in the future is still open, said Feuerherdt. The question of when these videos should come out is also still open , has not yet been answered. “We are confident that this will work out over the course of this season”said Feuerherdt.
Discussion in England: Radio communications in general publish?
In England, an error in the video assistant in the game between Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool FC sparked a new discussion about the general publication of radio traffic. “I think that live broadcasting of the talks will remain an issue in the future”Mark Bullingham, chief executive of the English FA, told the Guardian: “The greater transparency would also better illustrate the difficulty of the referee’s tasks.”
However, it is not possible that such a change will occur in the short term. This would require a change to the rules, which do not provide for the general live publication of radio traffic. If FIFA, which is responsible for VAR, proposes such a change, the International Football Association Board (IFAB), which is responsible for rules issues, would still have to agree.
A change would therefore only come into question from the 2024/25 season at the earliest – if there is even the will to do so. “As far as we know, there are currently no plans at the IFAB to generally publish radio traffic in the stadium or in the broadcast.”said Feuerherdt. When asked by Sportschau, the IFAB confirmed that nothing more was currently planned than the current tests with announcements from the referees in the stadium.
IFAB tests referees’ announcements in the stadium
Most recently, FIFA and IFAB approved a test procedure in which the referees in the stadium announce what happened after a decision has been made. The referees at the 2023 Women’s World Cup always said the following:
- What decision was made, for example a penalty or a goal not given
- Which player with which shirt number committed the criminal offense
- What type of offense was assessed, for example handball or foul
- A brief description of what happened – for example, an arm spread too far during a handball.
Referee Melissa Borjas announces a VAR decision over the microphone at the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
There was also confusion and errors. It is not yet clear whether and in what form the approach will be pursued in future tournaments. The testing process has so far been limited to FIFA tournaments, but may be opened up to other tournaments. It was also used at the U20 in Argentina, and it will also be used at the U17 World Cup in Indonesia and the 2023 Club World Cup in Saudi Arabia.