Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland could block video technology at Russia 2018
Welsh FA chief Jonathan Ford warns of 'dangerous' and a 'high-risk strategy' after teething problems in VAR trials
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PLANS to introduce video technology at next summer’s World Cup finals could be blocked by Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
And Welsh FA chief Jonathan Ford warned it will be “dangerous” and a “high-risk strategy” to press ahead with the current plans.
Fifa president Gianni Infantino is leading the push for the video assistant referees (VAR) to be used at Russia 2018.
But he faces opposition from the Home Nations following a series of teething problems with the controversial new system during trials around the world.
The International FA Board will discuss the issue at a business meeting in December before voting on Infantino’s World Cup proposal at their AGM next March.
There are eight members on the International Board — four from Fifa and one each from the FAs of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
At least six members must vote in favour before any changes to the rules can be introduced.
Ford said: “To have VARs at the World Cup finals is really quite a dangerous thing to do.
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“It’s a high-risk strategy if it all goes wrong in Russia and has to be booted out afterwards.
“Infantino wanted to make an impact when he became president and was very active to push through the notion of trials at his first board meeting last year.
“But all it needs is for a majority of the British associations to stand up and say they are not happy. I understand the English FA would probably want to push things through for the sake of progress.
“But my major concern is that we are rushing into this.”
Several leading countries — including Germany, Italy, France and the USA — have been trialling video technology this season.
VAR was first used at last year’s Club World Cup in Japan when Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane called it “a source of confusion”.
It can only be used to rule on goals, penalty decisions, direct red cards and cases of mistaken identity.
There was further criticism when Chile’s Gonzalo Jara escaped with a yellow card for a clear elbow in the face of Germany’s Timo Wenger at the Confederations Cup final.
And head of the project in Germany has admitted “unacceptable problems” with the new technology could bring the trials to an early end.
A number of Bundesliga games have been affected by video officials unable to contact refs on the pitch, while the lines used to help with offside calls were often unavailable.
Former ref Hellmut Krug admitted: “We cannot go on like this week in, week out. It’s unacceptable, especially for the referees.”
But the experiment has proved more successful in Italy’s Serie A, where project chief Carlo Tavecchio said: “It is a great method of justice and I would like to say that at least ten decisions have been corrected.
“Like anything, it takes to get used to it, but as far as time needed for decisions to be reached is concerned, the data shows it is taking a bit longer than we expected and we need to reduce that.”
