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You referees won fifa help make more accurate decisions in less time. This is called a semi-automatic impediment. A sensor in the center of the ball will identify the exact moment it is hit; 12 cameras will monitor all movement on the pitch and map 29 areas of players’ bodies, which may or may not be in an offside position. The system does this 50 times per second.

“A light will come on in the booth and the referee will be informed by VAR that this player was offside. A technology which, in effect, will use the same criteria for all offside situations, and will also ensure that the decision is made correctly,” says refereeing commentator Sandro Meira Ricci.

Stadium screens and broadcasts will show 3D animation of movement, as is already happening in tennis and volleyball matches, for example. But there are cases where the machine will not replace the human gaze.

“Except in cases where this advanced player can interfere with the opponent, even without touching the ball. In this case, the referee will be informed by the VAR and will have to go to the monitor to assess whether or not his advanced position interferes the opponent”, explains Sandro.

Currently, the offside line is drawn manually by an operator in the VAR room. With the new technology, the system will do this automatically and the analysis of more complex offers, which takes around 70 seconds on average, is expected to be much faster and take between 20 and 25 seconds.

The head of the entity’s refereeing department, Pierluigi Collina, says the objective is to have the most precise decision possible, as was the case with goal ball technology: “if there is evidence that a player is offside or not, everyone will be happy, just like whether a ball went in or not.

“The technology has already been tested both in the Arab Cup at the end of last year and in the Club World Cup, which are two competitions organized by FIFA. And it was only after several successful tests that FIFA actually implements the system,” says Sandro.