Football Video Refereeing: Must the Beautiful Game Change?

The BBC reports that the FA will trial video refereeing in the FA cup next year. This has sparked controversy between two clear camps of fans. On one side of the argument, football is an outdated game that needs changing in line with other sports. On the other side, the argument is that football should be left alone, and part of the game is the decisions that are made by referees and their impact.

Modernisation is necessary. The essence of the beautiful game will not change because of a quick 30-second review of an incident. In fact, video refereeing allows for incredibly costly decisions to be made correctly. This will improve the game.

Combating Discrimination

Football is a sport that is experiencing less and less racism. But, shockingly it is still present at some levels. For example, the John Terry and Anton Ferdinand incident. By using video refereeing and the use of player microphones, it could speed up the process of combating discrimination. It could also prevent any abuse in the first instance.

Furthermore, the underlying homophobia in football could be eased with player mics. There is an issue of many players unable to express their true sexuality because of the fear of the consequences. Arguably, this is mostly centred around fan abuse, but players too use homophobic insults. Often undetected, such abuse goes unpunished. But, with the use of mics, there would be no way for abuse to go unpunished.

Making the Right Call

By implementing the video refereeing system, it should instantly allow for the right punishment for a foul. This is important in terms of the match, by fully punishing sure a red-card challenge. So, in match-changing moments, the right decision resolves any fan or manager’s grievances after the match.

It is often hard for referees to give the right decision because of the chaos inside an 18-yard box. In just one incident a referee might have to make multiple decisions. Was it a penalty? Who fouled who? How to punish them? By referring back to a video replay, this should lessen the chance of a wrong decision.

For some clubs, video technology could prove to be vital. Lower clubs receive much-needed revenue by progressing in the FA Cup. A mistakenly given penalty, knocking them out takes away this revenue. Therefore, video refereeing could help the smaller clubs, and should completely rule out any top club bias.

Sacrilege?

Verdict

Main Photo