Sheffield United’s crucial match at Burnley this weekend will occur amid the ongoing controversy surrounding VAR, which has become a regular feature in Premier League games this season. Despite the frustration felt by many supporters and followers, the system isn’t going away anytime soon.
Stuart Attwell will oversee VAR duties at Turf Moor as the Blades aim to widen the gap by eight points against their former Championship counterparts. Attwell recently presided over VAR in the contentious Fulham-Wolves match, drawing criticism once again, intensifying scrutiny on his decisions this Saturday.
While discussions by FIFA are underway to potentially expand VAR’s authority to intervene in corner kicks, free-kicks, yellow cards, and beyond its current scope, any concrete decision is not expected until at least March, as reported by The Times. This move suggests that VAR might acquire more significant powers in the foreseeable future.
FA Chief Executive Mark Bullingham had acknowledged the inevitable talks last month but hinted at fears that even more VAR influences could ruin the flow of football matches. He said: “I know that is something we will discuss in the Ifab. We would be really reluctant to have a game that was stopped a lot more than it currently is but that will be a proper discussion.”
FIFA is leading the negotiations, but any changes to VAR protocols must be accepted by Ifab. The four British FAs comprise the Ifab group, which would vote on any proposed policies. Each FA has one vote, whereas FIFA has four, and any modifications require a total of six votes to be approved.
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