Now Reading: UEFA launches Clear Line platform to curb VAR overuse from 2026
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UEFA launches Clear Line platform to curb VAR overuse from 2026
UEFA has launched a public platform called Clear Line containing around 150 video examples from real matches, each with an explanation of the principles used by referees and VARs. The move, announced…
The Story in Brief
UEFA has launched a public platform called Clear Line containing around 150 video examples from real matches, each with an explanation of the principles used by referees and VARs. The move, announced ahead of a broader overhaul from the 2026-27 season, aims to limit VAR intervention to unmistakable errors rather than subjective decisions.
Roberto Rosetti, UEFA’s refereeing chief, told BBC Sport that growing frustration with the technology prompted the project. “It’s football, not PlayStation,” he said, warning that reviews extending beyond 90 seconds risk losing credibility. Referees will now be shown freeze-frames, half-speed and normal-speed replays at pitchside monitors to judge context rather than isolated stills.
The Indian Opinion
Indian football fans, tired of watching Premier League matches where a goal is reviewed for five minutes over a toenail offside, will welcome UEFA’s move. The lazy narrative that VAR is inherently broken misses the point: the tool is fine, the instructions were not. UEFA has now named the enemy, 'microscopic situations'. The real test will be whether Clear Line produces the same handball decision in the Champions League and the Indian Super League. If it does not, the credibility problem moves from the screen to the rulebook itself.
Source: hindustantimes.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
