AFC President hails impact of VAR
26th January 2019
Abu Dhabi: Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) President, witnessed at firsthand on Friday the successful introduction of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system in the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019.
Shaikh Salman went to the Video Operations Room (VOR) at the Zayed Sports City Stadium in Abu Dhabi during half-time of the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 quarter-final between Qatar and Korea Republic, where the West Asians booked their first-ever semi-final berth with a narrow 1-0 victory.
The VAR has been implemented with the support and approval of FIFA and the International Football Association Board (IFAB) and introduced from the quarter-finals onwards.
The AFC President said: “It was most encouraging to see the professionalism and dedication of all the staff delivering the VAR so successfully at the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019.
“The AFC has been determined to embrace technology to benefit this competition and everyone has seen how well it has worked so far. We are now looking forward to the semi-finals and final, where the VAR will provide a valuable support for the referees.
“On behalf of the AFC and the Asian football family, I would also like to thank FIFA and IFAB for their assistance in making sure we were ready with VAR as well as the world-renowned companies who are providing the technology.”
Source: the-afc.com