It has been talked about for years but it seems that FIFA are finally seeing some sense.
On Tuesday, they announced that Goal line Technology will be used in Brazil for the 2014 World Cup.
FIFA trialled the camera-dependent ‘Hawk-Eye’ and magnetic field-based ‘GoalRef’ club world championship in December 2012 after granting both licenses for worldwide use.
Both systems successfully recorded all 21 goals scored in the tournament and didn’t throw up any incorrect readings.
This has led to the English Premier League considering using GLT for matches played at Wembley.
Although this decision is a step in the right direction, you have to feel that football is years behind many other sports.
Snooker, Rugby and Tennis all use Hawk Eye system and it has worked well.
Not only making sure the right decisions are made but it is quick and although used in some important sporting events, it has elements of fun with supporters, which, can be argued, is missing in football at the moment.
However, UEFA president Sepp Blatter is still strongly against the system as he feels football will become too ‘robotic.’
Any football fan would agree that if the right decisions are being made, then they wouldn’t care how decisions are made.
Blatter is stuck in the past and still thinks it’s fine that situations such as Frank Lampard’s ‘goal’ at the 2010 World Cup to go ahead.
Not that the entire population of Scotland were complaining at the time.
Despite the use of GLT clearly going to benefit the game, where do we stop in terms of the use of other technology.
Ones such as ‘Video-Ref’ which would make decisions on the rest of the pitch, are being discussed.
These would take on such decisions like offsides and contentious red card awards.
Many have said that this is too far and it could ruin the game.
I vividly remember a game in the last World Cup between Argentina and Mexico where Carlos Tevez scored a goal that came from a clear offside position and before the game was restarted, the big TV screens within the stadium had shown the replay.
Fans, players and officials could clearly see that the goal shouldn’t have stood yet thanks to footballing rules not allowing video replays, the referee wasn’t allowed to change his decision.
If this wasn’t a strong reason for other technology being used then what is?
Football bodies are dated and feel that the game will become to reliable on technology,
What’s wrong with that? As long as the correct decisions are made.
Games are won and lost on bad mistakes too much these days and it’s time to stop.
It is almost as if those you argue against the introduction of systems like goal line technology and other systems prefer seeing human errors being made by officials, so they have something to talk about after a game.
That’s not the times we live in and if FIFA and UEFA don’t act quickly, then football will continue to be stuck in the past.
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