IFAB said this thing called video assistant referee (VAR) was brought to help football and fix all the small things the referees used to miss but it is now turning the game into something else and most fans are no longer excited the same way again.
It was supposed to remove errors and make the game fair but now it is removing the joy and the natural part of football that made people jump and scream before without checking any screen or waiting for replay.
Now it’s just too much pause and too much checking and it’s not what football was about before this thing came.
They tested it for some years before 2018 and then after that World Cup and Premier League picked it up, it just became normal in every league like it was forced inside without people having any proper say about it.
Since then every league you watch now has screen people waiting to press play and pause and signal and whistle and the referee just listens to voice from someone not even on the pitch and changes his mind like it was not his match. The game used to flow but now it is controlled by people watching videos and making everything slow even when the moment is already gone.
You can’t even cheer well anymore because you are waiting for VAR to cancel it or maybe allow it but after the moment has passed and everything is flat already and the players already stopped celebrating.
It’s like waiting to see if the happiness will be allowed and that waiting kills the whole reason why people even love the sport because it’s not supposed to be like chess or law. The joy that comes naturally is now controlled and reviewed like they are not sure if it should exist.
What Is VAR About?
VAR is not one machine or person, it's a group of officials sitting somewhere away from the stadium watching replays of everything and checking for mistakes that maybe the referee didn’t even think was a problem.
They stop the match and tell the ref to walk to one small screen near the field while everyone stands and waits and nobody knows if they should be clapping or shouting or sitting down because the screen has not finished playing yet.
Even the referee that saw it with his eyes and made a call has to now change his mind after watching what someone else told him to go and rewatch.
Sometimes the replay shows what already happened clearly but the new decision feels worse than the original one because it’s no longer about what was seen live but about slow motion and pausing and zooming something that already passed.
Even the players are confused because they thought it was over and they already moved on but now they have to come back and wait for a new answer that can still go against them. It is not consistent and it is not smooth and it is just becoming a big delay that doesn’t even make the football better most of the time.
It’s not like fans enjoy waiting for long breaks or watching someone stand at a screen every match and then still not get the result that makes sense because even after review they still sometimes get it wrong.
It’s just extra drama and frustration and the match loses its rhythm and that rhythm is what football used to be before. Now everything is check this, check that, wait for confirmation before you feel anything and that’s just not how football works.
How Does VAR Work?
IFAB said there are only four things VAR is supposed to be used for but even those four things have turned to 44 because every little thing now needs checking and reviews and long delays that just frustrate the whole game.
Originally, they said it is only for offsides or goals or penalties or red cards or maybe when the referee gives yellow to the wrong person but now even throw-ins and small body contacts are being reviewed like it's a serious crime. and the worst part is sometimes they go all the way back to something that happened one minute ago and cancel a goal that the fans have already celebrated with tears and shouting and flares.
VAR Destroys Football Moments
If you know Richarlison you know that boy celebrates like his life depends on it and you cannot blame him because he plays with heart and when he scores and takes off his shirt and runs like a mad man it’s because the goal means something.
But twice now VAR has done him dirty and cancelled goals after he finished dancing and flexing and now the joy is just left hanging in the air because nothing came out of it and people start to laugh and mock and forget the beauty of that moment.
And this kind of thing keeps happening every week and it’s no longer funny because football is becoming fear and not celebration anymore because everybody is waiting for VAR like it’s the real referee.
VAR Saves the Day for Teams
But sometimes VAR is the hero because it saves teams from injustice and maybe if it wasn’t there some teams would lose games for no reason and that’s why people still say VAR is a good thing.
There was a match between Man United and Fulham and VAR said Harry Maguire was in an offside position even though he didn’t touch the ball and didn’t disturb anybody but still they cancelled the goal and the rules said they were right.
So you see sometimes VAR can stop a robbery and make the match fair but even in doing that it still feels weird and uncomfortable because nobody really understands the logic and it feels like they are just picking what they want to see.
VAR Can Overrule the Referee
The referee used to be the boss of the match but now VAR is the one with the final say because once they call him to go and check the screen you already know the decision is about to change whether it makes sense or not.
Sometimes the ref is sure of what he saw and he points to the spot or waves play on and then VAR says no you’re wrong come and watch this again and the whole game pauses and the players start arguing and defending themselves.
When the referee changes his mind everybody knows it’s not his decision anymore.
One example happened last week when Muniz was deemed to have stepped on Chalobah during Fulham vs Chelsea. Fulham scored and VAR referee Salisbury called play back for a foul of the defender and the goal was canceled.
Interestingly, it was deemed to be a wrong decision and Salisbury was dropped from being the VAR for the next match he was scheduled for.
You Clearly Cannot Have Fairness and Passion
People wanted justice in football but they didn’t know the price would be passion and now every time a goal is scored, people are scared to celebrate because VAR might come and cancel it and say no goal because of some toenail or shoulder being offside.
Football used to be joy and madness and loudness but now it’s slow and frozen and every big moment is followed by silence and waiting and confusion and that is not what football used to be.
You cannot tell people to celebrate and then wait and then celebrate again because that’s not how emotions work and that’s why people are angry because they feel like they are watching a sport that doesn’t trust itself anymore.
Sadly, There is No Consistency with VAR
This week VAR gives a penalty for a handball and the next week they say that same kind of handball is not enough and people just sit and wonder if the rules are written in pencil or what.
Different leagues use VAR in different ways and sometimes it depends on which referee is on duty and sometimes the same ref will do two different things in two matches and there is nobody to question it because they will say it’s interpretation.
The same foul can be a red card today and a normal play tomorrow and that’s why people say they don’t understand VAR anymore because the whole thing is just vibes and replays and no real logic.
Game’s Gone
Yes, the game is gone.
The joy is not the same, the energy is not the same and when you watch football now you feel like you are watching a reality show with plot twists and camera angles and decisions that don’t always feel like football.
And even if VAR gets faster or smarter or more high-tech, the feeling that it already killed something will never fully go away because some things once broken can’t be restored even if they are corrected.
