Ceferin announces wider lines in the offside

UEFA will impose thicker lines for offside decisions reviewed by the VAR in the Champions League and the Europa League in an attempt to favor the scoring production next season, as announced by its president, Aleksander Ceferin, in a Sky Sports interview. In fact, the new lines could come into force in the Eurocup It starts in June.

Aleksander Ceferin said he has been in talks with the arbitration officials of the presiding organization to implement the changes that ensure the teams are not “ruined” by a wrong decision. “An offside one centimeter is not out of play, because that is not the spirit of the rule. And it has to be a clear and manifest error for the VAR to intervene. Therefore, thicker lines are essential, because they are now drawn subjectively and are not exact. For a centimeter you can ruin a club's season with a wrong decision. “

“There is also the question of hands, which is poblematic, but I don't know what to do exactly about. We are discussing a lot with our referees. “

Football lawmakers, IFAB, allow each competition to determine the level of accuracy of their VAR systems, because there is no specific law on the width of the offside lines.

The Premier League will discuss the use of VAR, including offside decisions, at a club meeting next month.

Towards a new Champions

On the other hand, Ceferin has confirmed that an agreement between European clubs on a new format of the Champions League is “very close”, after the talks held before the UEFA Congress in Amsterdam this week.

The president of the highest European football body met Monday with the Premier League executive president, Richard Masters, and senior representatives of the five largest leagues in European football. “We have to stay together. We have to debate the future of European football. We will all have to give in to something, but in the end, the decision will be made by the UEFA Executive Committee. With debate, I think we will agree very soon because we know what are the principles of the European sports model and, especially, football. ” The European Club Association holds its 24th General Assembly in Budapest on March 30 and 31.