Indonesian FA Looking at Possibility to Use VAR in Liga 1 Next Year

TheIndonesia.id - Indonesian Football Association PSSI said it’s currently looking to get sponsorships to implement video assistant referee, or VAR, in the country’s first division Liga 1 from next year.

PSSI chairman Mochamad Iriawan confirmed the intention to integrate the latest and most advanced technology into Indonesian football to improve the quality of competition.

The association actually used additional assistant referees in 2021/2022’s Liga 1 matches, positioned behind the goal line, but VAR implementation is seen as a necessity to help the league become more competitive.

“We already have additional assistant referees, but we want [to use] VAR. We have started communication [and asked] if there are sponsors that would like to fund VAR because it’s quite costly,” Iriawan said on Tuesday, April 19, as reported by Antara.

According to him, the cost of VAR can reach up to Rp90 billion (US$6,400), and the operational cost for each match is at Rp200 million.

“We’re studying this, and hopefully it can [be implemented] from next year because there’ll be the U-20 World Cup,” Iriawan added.

Indonesia is set to host FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2023, and six stadiums have been appointed to host the matches.

PSSI and Liga 1 organizer PT Liga Indonesia Baru aims to start the use of VAR in the top division football to respond to critics surrounding referee decisions that are often deemed controversial.

According to the International Football Association Board (IFAB), VAR is a “match official, with independent access to match footage, who may assist the referee only in the event of a ‘clear and obvious error’ or ‘serious missed incident’” related to goal/no goal, penalty/no penalty, direct red card, and mistaken identity.

VAR was used in 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia and has been used in numerous football competitions across the globe including in the English Premier League, Italian Serie A, and Spanish La Liga.