The International Board has decided: yes they will be able to listen to dialogues between the referee and the Var

The public and users will be able to listen, hear (and of course comment) on the audio between the referee and the Var when a decision is made on a controversial case.

It is the decision that emerged at the end of the annual general assembly of the International board (Ifab, the body that regulates football) which gave the green light to the possibility for fans to hear the explanations of the decisions taken at the Var directly from the referee during matches: whether it’s in the stadium or on television. The experiment was tested in Morocco on the occasion of the Club World Cup: the public in the stadium and in front of the TV will be able to hear live what the referees say when there is a consultation at the Var. The referees will be able to clarify to the public via a microphone the decisions they will make on the pitch. The regulatory change will already be adopted for the Under 20 World Cup in Indonesia and for the Women’s World Cup to be played in New Zealand and Australia in August. At the end of these tournaments and in any case by the end of the year, it is written in an Ifab note “a decision will be made whether the process will continue in the other FIFA tournaments to further improve communication with the fans in the stadiums”.

PROCEDURES AND RECOVERY

—

At the same Ifab meeting, Fifa provided updates on the application of semi-automatic offside technology and the integration of “light” VAR, and it was decided to review the protocol, procedures and practicalities of VAR with the main interested parties. “For those competitions that did not have the resources to implement VAR and ‘light’ VAR, an additional video review system was approved in testing with the intention of making it available worldwide. But that’s not all, because a more accurate calculation of the so-called ‘recovery time’, as happened at the World Cup, was also welcomed. It was agreed that competitions around the world should follow this approach,” writes the body. So, for now, no actual time. Finally “it was agreed to set up a working group to focus on further ways to improve discipline and reduce aggression towards match officials, by players and managers of youth and amateur teams. In this regard, the English Football Association has reported on a process approved by Ifab and implemented at grassroots level, in which referees wear cameras which record all communication with players and coaches.