UEFA has said the ball that will be used at Euro 2024 will help produce faster offside and handball decisions.
The ‘Fussballliebe’ uses Adidas’ connected ball technology to send data in real time to officials.
UEFA says the ball will offer “unprecedented insight into every element of the movement of the ball, contributing to the video assistant referee (VAR) decision-making process”.
The technology knows when a touch has taken place, but not where on the body.
Officials will then use images from cameras, as they do now to decide whether a handball has taken place.
UEFA believes it should speed up that process for such decisions, along with providing more accurate offside calls.
“Combining player position data with artificial intelligence (AI), the innovation contributes to UEFA’s semi-automated offside technology and will be key to supporting faster in-match decisions,” said UEFA.
“The technology can also help VAR officials to identify every individual touch of the ball, further reducing time spent resolving handball and penalty incidents.”
There has been criticism of VAR across Europe, especially in the Premier League, with many managers speaking out about how the technology is used.
The Premier League opted against using semi-automated offsides this season with its sponsor, Nike, yet to produce a ball the top-flight clubs are happy with.
Euro 2024 takes place in Germany from 14 June to 14 July. —BBC
