UEFA Confirm Video Assistant Referee Will Be Used in the Champions League Next Season

UEFA have confirmed that the video assistant referee (VAR) will be introduced to a whole host of important competitions next season, including the Champions

UEFA have confirmed that the video assistant referee (VAR) will be introduced to a whole host of important competitions next season, including the Champions League.

VAR played a huge part in the World Cup this summer, with the majority of fans and pundits agreeing that it will prove to be beneficial to the sport. The system is currently being used in many major leagues across Europe, and will soon be brought in to other competitions.

#UEFAExCo exclusive: The video assistant referee (VAR system) will be used in the UEFA @ChampionsLeague from next season (2019/20)

It will also be used in:

📺#SuperCup 2019
📺@UEFAEURO 2020 final tournament
📺@EuropaLeague 2020/21
📺#NationsLeague Finals 2021

More to follow pic.twitter.com/C4jmNPNZ8Z

— UEFA (@UEFA) September 27, 2018

UEFA revealed the news on Twitter, stating: "The video assistant referee (VAR system) will be used in the UEFA Champions League from next season (2019/20)."

The tweet also added that VAR will be used in the 2019 Super Cup, EURO 2020, Europa League (beginning in the 2020-21 season) and the 2021 Nations League final.

The use of the video system has drawn much criticism, with huge questions asked around the utilisation and practicality of the system during matches. As of yet, VAR is not active in the Premier League, but it is being trialled at 15 matches this season.

Soccrates Images/GettyImages

The aim is to introduce VAR to the league next season, once it has proven to be able to cope with the demand of reviewing incidents in multiple simultaneous matches. The referee on the field is not involved in the trial, with those in the VAR hub simply performing their own tests on the matches.

However, it has been used at several Carabao Cup matches in England this season, and will also be operative during multiple FA Cup ties in the future.

no more cheating great news
all leauges should have var...

— Mats johansson (@lille_johansson) September 27, 2018

VAR played a huge role in this year's World Cup. 29 penalties were awarded, which is a new record for the tournament, and this is largely attributed to VAR identifying fouls which would have otherwise gone unnoticed.