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Video refs to be used at 2018 World Cup in Russia

Preliminary Draw of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia - Previews

SAINT PETERSBURG, RUSSIA - JULY 24: The FIFA World Cup trophy is displayed during a press conference ahead of the preliminary draw of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia at Konstantin Palace on July 24, 2015 in Saint Petersburg, Russia. (Photo by Dennis Grombkowski/Getty Images)

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FIFA president Gianni Infantino has confirmed that video referees will be used at the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

Video assistant referees (VARs) were trialed in recent international games and the FIFA Club World Cup and have proved hugely successful with decisions made quickly and correctly.

VARs can only interfere in big decisions such as goals, red cards, mistaken identities and penalties.

Via the BBC, here’s what Infantino had to say.

“We will use video refereeing at the 2018 World Cup because we’ve had nothing but positive feedback so far. If the referee made a mistake, we can’t have a situation where the only one who can’t see it is the referee.”

Infantino has long called for the introduction of video technology in soccer and now it is set to come to the biggest stage of all, with the International Football Association Board (IFAB) expected to formally vote it in.

The hope is that big decisions in huge games will no longer be called incorrectly due to human error and surely it is only a matter of time before VARs are used in the top leagues across the world. Australia’s A-League is the first top-flight league to trial the system.

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