UEFA is receiving praise for three VAR innovations after Friday night's game between Germany and Scotland, in which the host nation cruised to a 5-1 victory thanks to goals from Florian Wirtz, Jamal Musiala, Kai Havertz, Niclas Füllkrug and Emre Can. Overall it was an excellent performance from the hosts, and indeed French referee Clement Turpin who allowed the game to flow.
Friday's game required Turpin and his team of assistants to make a number of significant decisions throughout the game, notably overruling a penalty in the 25th minute, awarding Scotland's Ryan Porteous a straight red card just before half-time, and disallowing a goal from Füllkrug in the 76th minute.
Last night's decisions fell in line with a new refereeing directive from UEFA ahead of Euro 2024, in the hope of reducing dissent towards referees and giving match-attending fans a better experience.
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What are the Euro 2024 Refereeing Directives?
Before the Euros got underway on Friday night, UEFA Managing Director of Refereeing Roberto Rosetti announced a number of changes to the current VAR and refereeing system. Firstly, to reduce dissent on the captain will be allowed to approach referees to discuss decisions, and in return referees will attempt to give captains more detailed explanations regarding decisions. Those who ignore the protocol will be cautioned.
Secondly, VAR decisions will be explained on big screens in stadiums to give match-attending fans a better experience. This promotes accountability, transparency and will help fans in the stadium to be able to understand decisions better.
Another of the changes is the zero-tolerance policy for dangerous challenges in order to protect the image of the game and for the protection of the players.
UEFA Receives Praise For Efficient Use Of VAR in Euro 2024 Opener
The three changes outlined above were evident in Friday's game between Germany and Scotland. Firstly, fans inside the stadium were given a detailed explanation for why Germany's penalty in the 28th minute was overturned. As Jamal Musiala embarked on a dangerous run towards goal, he was brought down clumsily by Ryan Christie. Refeee Clement Turpin initially awarded a penalty, but thanks to a quick VAR review it was changed to a free-kick as the foul was committed on the edge of the penalty area. The process was quick and correct, and won over fans inside the stadium.
How VAR is made clearer for fans - just explaining decisions now #euro2024 pic.twitter.com/yoWSMhPfOX
— Rob Harris (@RobHarris) June 14, 2024
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We saw the 'zero-tolerance' of dangerous challenges when Ryan Porteous was shown a straight red card for a dangerous lunge on Ilkay Gundogan. Recklessly trying to stop the German midfielder from scoring, the Scot lunged at the ball and in doing so caught Gundogan well above the ankle. With the help of VAR, Clement Turpin quickly showed the Scottish defender a straight red card.
Ich komm noch immer nicht auf dieses Foul gegen Gündogan klar. Man sieht, wie der ganze Körper von Porteous plötzlich stoppt - und zwar einzig durch den Aufprall auf den Knöchel(!). Ein Wunder, dass die Nummer nicht mit ner üblen Verletzung endete. Gruseliges Foul. pic.twitter.com/wcmdKiVL6c
— Nietzsche (@Nietzsxhe) June 14, 2024
After the penalty was awarded and Porteous shown a red card, Turpin was seen explaining in detail his decision to Scotland captain Andy Robertson and offender Porteous, whilst the other 20 players on the pitch stood a good distance away. This was a positive example of how this new initiative can work, and will allow referees to make better decisions with more clarity. It follows a similar initiative currently in place in Rugby Union, and helps to tidy up the public image of football.
Una imagen que vale la pena destacar. SOLO EL CAPITÁN habla con el árbitro en la #Euro2024 sobre acciones discutidas. En este caso Andrew Robertson de Escocia fue quien tomó la batuta para acercarse a Turpin. Apenas arrancó el torneo, pero la medida pinta para ser un ÉXITO 👍 pic.twitter.com/0PI5JGeljq
— El VAR Central (Andrés) (@ElVarCentral) June 14, 2024
Is it time for these changes to be brought into the Premier League?
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