Soccer World Cup: New ‘specs’ for the man in the middle

The familiar old chant, ‘The referee needs glasses’ (a mild insult compared to other abuse he might suffer), has been superseded by far more sophisticated help than a pair of spectacles might offer.

Thanks to Fifa’s ongoing investment in technology and artificial intelligence, there should be fewer wrong calls and angry fans than at any previous World Cup.

We are already familiar with video assistant referee (VAR) technology, which is used in most top leagues around the world (but not yet in SA), and which has proven both positive and negative.

VAR has caused as many problems as it has resolved, but it’s getting more sophisticated and accurate as the technology improves.

As far as goal-line technology goes, VAR has been of huge benefit as it accurately determines whether or not the ball has crossed the line.

However, when it comes to marginal offside decisions, it has hindered as much as helped, inviting dispute and controversy. One of the criticisms has been the amount of time it takes to reach a decision, with play held up at times for five minutes.

Expect that all to change in Qatar, where technology will rule!

The official match ball, manufactured by Adidas and named ‘Al Rihla’, has a sensor at the centre that sends the precise location of the ball at a rate of 500 times a second!

Add to this 12 dedicated tracking cameras mounted underneath the roof of the stadium that don’t just link to the ball’s position, but to 29 points on each player’s body. This will be crucial to decision-making, given that some decisions are literally decided by the margin of a foot or even a finger!

This semi-automated offside technology will almost instantly relay the offside decision, in less than a third of the time it would normally take.

However, the referee still has the final say, as other factors, such as whether a player was attempting to play the ball or obstructing the vision of the goalkeeper, must also be considered.

This is not ‘robot refereeing’! Not yet, anyway.

#TacklingQatar2022: Manned by soccer fundi Dave Savides, the Corner Shop is the place to be for Soccer World Cup news. Savides, the long-time editor of the Zululand Observer, is tackling the coverage of the world’s greatest footie extravaganza for Caxton Local Media.

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