The president of the world’s football governing body, FIFA, Gianni Infantino, has considered introducing the “semi-automated offside” system at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
The system was first adopted at the Club World Cup, which was won by Chelsea. The technology was also used at the recent Arab Cup, which was held inside four of the eight World Cup stadiums in Doha.
Reports have it that the technology worked well at the competitions as it resulted in extremely quicker offside calls than the VAR line-led system.
FIFA executives are expected to make a decision on the new idea during the annual general meeting of the law-making International FA Board.
As per SunSport, former Italian referee Pierluigi Collina, who is also a FIFA referee chief, said: “The referees and assistants are still responsible for the decisions on the field of play.” The technology only gives them valuable support to make more accurate and quicker decisions, particularly when the offside decision is very tight and difficult. ”
