To explore the possibility of India taking part in the trial of the “Additional Video Review System,” the All India Football Federation (AIFF) has written to the International Football Association Board (IFAB) (AVRS). In an official statement, AIFF said, “The President’s recommendation aims to consider the extension of the existing technical infrastructure to accommodate an ‘on-demand’ video review request from the referees through a multi-angle, multi-camera broadcast feed.”
“Our prime objective here is to reduce the margin of error by empowering match officials with the technology to assist in their decision-making. While we will continue to work to implement VAR, I feel that, to begin with, AVRS can be a great option for a country like India. AVRS would help us study the impact of the technology, train our match officials with the new concept, and assess its adaptation by players, coaches, and clubs alike,” AIFF president Kalyan Chaubey said.
VAR set-up is still limited because of financial and infrastructure limitations in FIFA’s Implementation Assistance and Approval Programme (IAAP).
Only over 30% of the 211 football-playing nations presently have VAR subscriptions for whole domestic seasons or select stages, mostly in Europe and South America. The President asked the AIFF Referee Department to conduct the study and seek FIFA’s advice and approval.