In this ongoing AFCON in Cameroon, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) decided to fully use Video Assistant Referee (VAR), an innovation that gained worldwide recognition in 2018.
CAF had previously used VAR from the quarter-finals stage of the 2019 AFCON edition in Egypt. However, for this ongoing edition, the technology is being used in all matches.
The 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) is now in the quarter-finals stage. We can say that the tournament has had heart-warming stories as teams have punched above their weights to create bits of history for their nations. So far it’s indeed a memorable event.
VAR has been at the center stage of the proceedings aiding both excellent and controversial moments.
Let us focus on the controversial moments. The decision to introduce VAR from the group stage was bound to lead to a number of controversial moments. The refereeing decisions have no doubt affected the overall climate of the tournament.
Michael Essien, a Ghanaian football legend, asked a question as to whether the tournament was becoming soft. He was referring to the spate of red cards issued on almost all match days.
Essien appreciates the technology though he says that it has made African football ‘soft’. He says VAR has produced relatively higher controversial moments from a historical point of view that have ultimately cost several teams their places in the tournament.
13 reds and 19 penalties have been awarded after VAR intervention. Only at the round of 16 stage, seven red cards were awarded with the most notable coming in the Senegal vs Cape Verde game.
In the above game, two red cards were controversially issued to send off two Cape Verde players.
On many occasions, VAR has ‘incited’ on-field referees to overturn initial decisions of yellow cards to red cards. Arguably sometimes camera elevations are simply not enough to pass a fool-proof verdict.
Lastly, it’s key to note that VAR in itself is not a problem, however, the humans that make use of the technology are.