FIFA qualifies tests with semi-automatic offside in the Club World Cup as “successful”

The Club World Cup was the perfect occasion for FIFA to carry out new tests with semi-automatic offside technology (SAOT). In fact, the tool was used this Wednesday with the participation of retired referee Pierluigi Collina, who is currently the president of the FIFA Referees Committee.

The former judge and the FIFA Technology and Innovation team conducted the trial at the Mohammed Bin Zayed Stadium. The results, according to a note published by the soccer entity on its official website, were described as “successful”. In this regard, the protagonists left their first impressions.

“We continue with a test to try to achieve the goal: to have more precise decisions and also faster decisions in offside incidents”Hill explained. “It is not offside of the robot. Referees and assistants remain responsible for the decision on the field of play. The technology just gives them valuable support to make more accurate and faster decisions, particularly when the offside incident is very tight and difficult.”he added.

The system, used in the Arab Cup last year and with plans to implement it in the Qatar 2022 World Cup, is also applied in 47 countries around the world and in more than 100 competitions, including all FIFA tournaments.

SAOT is an extension of the VAR system that includes ten cameras, as well as several broadcast TV cameras, installed throughout the stadium to track 18 data points on each individual player, providing their position on the pitch. The number of data points is expected to increase to 29 points per player when the selections tournament takes place in November.

This data is then passed on to an AVAR specifically dedicated to offside decisions to verify and make their recommendation to the VAR and referee on the field. This process occurs in real time and therefore means that decisions on offside calls can be made within seconds.

Sebastian Runge, head of FIFA Football Technology, provided more details to the institution’s portal: “We’re also tracking limbs, we’re tracking arms and legs, and we know exactly where their entire position is at every moment of the game. 50 times per second”.

Similarly, FIFA is testing the use of 3D animations that clearly illustrate when a player is on or offside. “We have introduced an offside animation, which is not related to the decision-making process, but certainly offers a better understanding and a clearer view of the offside or onside decision. Once the decision is made, this type of animation begins to be produced. A few seconds later, this can better demonstrate what happened, instead of using the normal 2D lines.”Colin said.