We should move a little closer to goal-line technology in football today but don’t get too excited
We’re not there yet but football should move a little closer to implementing goal-line technology today.
It is expected that later today the International FA Board (IFAB) will give the green light to two different systems of detecting if a ball has crossed the goal-line, Hawk-Eye and GoalRef.
That opens the way up for any league in the world to implement the technology but it will be a while yet before we see it in action as the systems will need to be licensed, installed and then tested in every stadium before they can be used.
The IFAB will also meet to discuss the merits of the extra referee that stands on the goal-line. As far as we can see, and based on their performance at Euro 2012, they perform absolutely no function and as they missed the ‘goal’ Ukraine scored against England, we hope they are scrapped.
One small, or large to be honest, concern is that the IFAB have stated that the technology can only be used to aid the referee. In short, if the ref thinks it wasn’t a goal, even if the tech shows it was, the ref’s ruling stands. There may be trouble ahead with that set-up.
There is always a chance, especially in football, that the vote won’t go as expected but today should be a another small step towards making football a better sport to watch.
