PREMIER LEAGUE referees may be able to explain VAR decisions to fans next season in a potential major change in protocol.
PGMOL chief Howard Webb is keen to improve transparency between referees and fans.
And the new initiative could help repair damaged trust in top-flight officials.
Football lawmakers Ifab have given the Prem the green light for refs to communicate their calls to those in the stadium.
It comes following a successful trial of the new procedure in Mexico and Portugal.
But the new plans would still need to be approved before being introduced by the Premier League.
Like in the Women’s World Cup and Club World Cup, the refs are expected to be mic’d up inside stadiums.
And after consulting the VAR monitor and agreeing on a decision, they will then declare the basic reasoning over the PA system to the crowd – such as identifying who committed a foul or was offside for example.
There was some criticism that the explanations at the Women’s World Cup were too basic and only copied what was displayed on the big screens.
And one nervous official sparked chaos when she declared “no goal” before quickly correcting herself: “No, wait… no offside. Goal!”
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But if it comes in for the Premier League, Webb will hope the chance for refs to give a brief overview should help reduce confusion and frustration for fans watching the game live in the stadium.
However, in a blow to fans, it is understood there are no plans yet to make the full step towards rugby’s open dialogue system.
In rugby, fans watching matches live on television are able to listen in to the conversations between referees, including those on the field and in the TMO room.
This has proved incredibly popular in understanding decisions as they are made.
But while football will not be introducing this in 2024-25, there is hope that broadcasters will be able to use the audio footage after games.
