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The Premier League introduced VAR at the start of this season and the system has already caused quite a bit of controversy. It is clear that despite the tests last season and the fact that we have seen it used in other competitions prior to the Premier League taking it on board, things are still far from perfect.
The basic principle of VAR is to eliminate any 'clear and obvious errors' made by officials on the field. However, over the first couple of months of the Premier League season, it could be argued that VAR has further clouded many decisions, and made things a lot less clear and obvious for fans of the sport.
The big issue for most people seems to be the grey area when it comes to overturning a decision. The system wants to give as much power to the officials on the field as possible, so for a decision to be overturned it must be 100% clear that an error was made. This has caused problems, not given us the solutions we were hoping for.
We are seeing goals scored that are given by the on-field officials that have foul play in the build-up, but because this is not a clear and obvious error, the on-field decision stands. A prime example of this was the goal that Manchester United scored against Liverpool, where the referee didn't give a foul in the build-up, but the error wasn't a big enough one for VAR to overturn.
With every passing incident, more questions are asked about VAR. The majority of fans are happy for it to be involved in the game, but as we have seen on numerous occasions already this season, there needs to be tweaks made. The system works brilliantly in sports such as rugby, cricket and tennis, although these have been using the technology for years, Football needs to take small steps if it is to get to their level; this isn't something that can be changed overnight.
Pressure will continue to come from fans, who are desperate to see things improve. It is not only the fans of teams involved, but also those who are general Premier League fans and bet on the games. This is one of the biggest betting leagues in the world, and every weekend there are millions of fans who place bets on the games, VAR affects them financially on occasions. According to newbettingsites.uk there are many bookmakers available for punters to use that accept bets on the Premier League every time there is a game, and these as well as those betting with them are going to have a keen eye on what happens with VAR in the future.
However, fans of the sport and those who place their bets with new betting sites may have to wait, we are unlikely to see any changes to VAR mid-season, and instead these will likely come over the summer, when a full review can take place.
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