Semi-automated offside technology will be used in competitive English football for the first time during the fifth round of the FA Cup, along with VAR.
Seven of the eight ties over the weekend of March 1/2 are being played at Premier League grounds and they will see the use of the system which aims to ‘enhance the speed and efficiency’ of calling offsides.
The semi-automated offside technology has been tested over the past two seasons and helps officials place the virtual offside line when analysing tight calls, with the help of player tracking. It also produces virtual graphics for viewers in the stadium and at home.
The Premier League had intended to introduce the technology into top-flight matches after the October or November international breaks this season but those plans were delayed. If it is a success in the FA Cup, semi-automated offside technology could still be introduced to the Premier League this season.
VAR will also be used across the eight fifth-round FA Cup ties, with in-stadium announcements from officials being made after decisions.
What is semi-automated offside technology and how does it work?
Semi-Automated Offside Technology (SAOT) uses tracking cameras to help the on-field and video match officials make better and faster offside decisions.
The cameras are designed to provide more efficient placement of the virtual offside line and produce subsequent virtual graphics to help supporters in the stadium and broadcasters.
The Premier League says that computer vision cameras, powered by Genius Sports, will be installed in every Premier League stadium. These cameras around the ground will track the ball, as well as thousands of data points for each player.
When a key moment occurs, such as a penalty, a goal or a red card, the technology will track those data points to see if any attacking player involved in the build-up was offside.
If a player receives a ball in an offside position, the technology will send an alert to the officials in the VAR hub, who will then check the point of contact with the ball and inform the on-field officials.
Graphics will be made available to broadcasters, as well as being shown to fans on big screens in the stadium.
What will the impact of SAOT be?
The Premier League hopes that, on average, offside decisions will be made more than 30 seconds faster.
But it warns there could still be delays due to “occasions of occlusion of the ball” (it being hidden from the cameras among a group of players), “edge decisions” or subjective decisions of whether an offside player was interfering with play. That would require intervention from the VAR, and possibly the on-field referee in the latter instance.
Why hasn’t SAOT been used in the Premier League yet?
Semi-automated offside technology is not new to football – a version of it was used during the 2022 World Cup – but a planned autumn 2024 introduction to the Premier League never materialised.
Speaking last week, Premier League chief football officer Tony Scholes said they have been developing a different system which they believe will be a success in the long term.
He said there had been “significant progress” made over the last four to six weeks.
“The system that we’ve adopted, we believe it to be the best system,” he said.
“We believe it to be the most accurate and the most future-proof system as well. I have to confess, given the difficulties that we had over the first few months of the season, I had severe doubts about this but the progress made over the last four to six weeks has been significant.”
Scholes insisted introducing it with potentially only a handful of games to go would not create an integrity issue.
“The operation of semi-automated offside technology does not change the integrity of the offside law and doesn’t change the integrity of decision-making,” he said.
“We have got 100 per cent accuracy [on offside after VAR checks] this season, so it won’t improve the accuracy. What it does is make the process more efficient.”
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The Telegraph’s Sam Dean and The Mirror’s John Cross discuss Manchester United’s controversial winner against Leicester City in the FA Cup fourth round
There was a series of controversial decisions across the fourth round of the FA Cup, with VAR not in use at that point.
Leicester City and Birmingham were among the clubs rueing the fact VAR is not used in the FA Cup until the fifth round onwards.
Earlier this month, the Premier League revealed data which appeared to show the accuracy is improving, stating there had been 13 VAR errors from 70 interventions this term, compared with 20 from 61 at the same stage last season.
The Premier League also claims 100 per cent of offside decisions in the top flight have been correct this season.
That will be of little comfort to Leicester supporters, who were convinced Harry Maguire was offside when he scored Man Utd’s late winner to knock them out of the FA Cup at Old Trafford.
Birmingham fans, meanwhile, will point to a goal for Newcastle where the whole of the ball did not appear to go over the line, while Chelsea’s appeals for handball at Brighton were unable to be examined – although the officials ultimately made the right call in that incident.
Read more about those decisions and how VAR could have affected the outcome of those ties.
FA Cup fifth round ties – to be played weekend of March 1
Aston Villa vs Cardiff – VAR and semi-automated offside technology
Bournemouth vs Wolves – VAR and semi-automated offside technology
Crystal Palace vs Millwall – VAR and semi-automated offside technology
Man City vs Plymouth – VAR and semi-automated offside technology
Man Utd vs Fulham – VAR and semi-automated offside technology
Newcastle vs Brighton – VAR and semi-automated offside technology
Nottingham Forest vs Ipswich – VAR and semi-automated offside technology
Preston vs Burnley – VAR only
