Collina signals wider trials for VAR challenge system in IFAB review

Pierluigi Collina says football could see further trials of a coach-led challenge model as part of a two-year review of the video assistant referee (VAR), after the International Football Association Board (IFAB) confirmed the assessment at its annual general meeting on Saturday.The review was announced on the 10th anniversary of IFAB’s initial approval of VAR trials, with the rulemakers signalling that, a decade on, the focus is on how the technology is being applied and whether it can be improved without harming match flow.Collina, who chairs FIFA’s referees committee, pointed to Football Video Support (FVS) as an area likely to expand, with the system already being tested in Italy, Malta and Spain. He said: “It is probable that in the next weeks we will open the possibility to join the trial for the next season to member association and competition organisers.”FVS is a ‘VAR-lite’ model designed to be cheaper and simpler than full VAR, allowing coaches to make two challenges per match rather than relying solely on interventions initiated by video officials.Collina acknowledged the debate around whether VAR is improving the sport, after another season in which the system has faced criticism from fans and stakeholders. He said: “In Italy, we say that in every wonderful marriage, there is a crisis after seven years.“So it might be possible that people fall in love with the VAR, and then after some years... crisis.”Football Association chief executive Mark Bullingham said any future direction had to protect the rhythm of games, warning against additional stoppages and a further expansion of checks.Bullingham said the FA was against VAR checks on corners, a measure approved for use at this summer’s World Cup, and added that the opt-in would not be used in England. However, he backed the idea of a challenge system as a way to reduce automatic interventions, with the decision-making burden moving towards coaching staff.“It changes the dynamic,” Bullingham said. “It reduces the amount of times when there is a VAR intervention and effectively puts the onus on the coach. That’s something which we might continue to learn as we trial that model.”