Video Scores at World Cup! Or Did It?

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internetBefore the World Cup started, Sepp Blatter, president of FIFA, said :
“We want to keep football as a game of the people with a human face, so we don’t want technology on the field of play because we want to maintain the spontaneity of football — played, administered and controlled by human beings.”

But numerous mistakes by human referees caused teams of humans to lose crucial games-- and forced Blatter into recanting.

England was denied a goal against Germany when Frank Lampard’s shot hit the crossbar and bounced beyond the goal line. Video showed clearly the referee and his assistant missed it. Later Argentina was given a goal against Mexico despite the fact that forward Carlos Tevez was offside.

A replay of Tevez’s offside goal on the stadium video screens in Soccer City incited Mexican players to confront the referee. (Actually video operators are under strict instructions from FIFA not to replay controversial calls on the stadium screens…but they are only human, too.)

“I apologized to England and Mexico,” Blatter told press. He also said he would start new discussions about video technology to determine if a goal was scored. But he is reportedly still against video replay that would have ruled out the Argentina goal against Mexico.

“The only principle we are going to bring back for discussion is goal-line technology,” Blatter insists.

The issue will be discussed in July, in Wales, when the International Football Association board meets to discuss rule changes. Last December, that same board voted against upgrades for the 2010 World Cup.

“It is obvious that after the experiences so far at this World Cup,” Blatter says, “it would be nonsense not to reopen the file on goal-line technology.”

Nonsense indeed.

Go Video Can’t Play But Could Sit on Goal Line