No English officials will be among the 13 video assistant referees (VARs) taking part in the World Cup this summer, with FIFA citing a lack of preparation and experience as the main reason why they were not selected.
FIFA said the criteria for selection as a VAR was based upon experience as video officials in national associations as well as their participation in preparatory seminars sponsored by the organisation.
Nine officials were appointed from European governing body UEFA, with three from Italy and two each from Germany and Portgual — countries whose top-flight leagues have implemented the technology. The other two European officials are from the Netherlands and Poland, which have adopted it for cup competitions.
The VAR system has generated lots of debate in its worldwide trials, with some arguing it has created additional controversy rather than reducing it.
FIFA has selected 36 referees and 63 assistant referees — 10 referees and 20 assistants are from UEFA — and some officials will also be given VAR appointments prior to matches.
The VAR team will be located in a centralised video operation room in Moscow and has access to all relevant broadcast cameras and two dedicated offside cameras, FIFA states on its website.
There will be one VAR and three assistant VARs for each match at the tournament, which begins when hosts Russia play Saudi Arabia in Moscow on June 14.
England is the only one of the home nations to have qualified, but there were no game officials from the UK selected for the tournament.
Howard Webb refereed the World Cup final in South Africa in 2010 and was England’s referee representative in Brazil in 2014.
Information from the Press Association was used in this report.
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