KUALA LUMPUR — Forty local referees and 14 replay operators are undergoing the second phase of video assistant referee (VAR) training from August 26 to September 11 in preparation for the implementation of the technology in the Malaysia League (M-League).
Football Association of Malaysia (FAM), in a Facebook post today, said the 17-day training course at Wisma FAM in Kelana Jaya is being conducted by Fifa’s VAR instructor Tamer Dorry of Egypt, who is assisted by Polish VAR technology expert Sebastian Andrzej Szelag.
Phase two of the training covers the use of the VAR simulator by using 150 video clips for each referee.
The training process will emphasise the use of VAR simulator technology based on the concept of ‘minimum interference, maximum benefits’ without interfering with the passage of play.
FAM deputy president Datuk S. Sivasundaram, who is also the FAM Referees’ Committee chairman, said they are always committed to the development and welfare of referees and hoped that the implementation of the VAR can reduce the number of wrong decisions made during matches.
Phase three of the VAR training is set to be held in November and December and FAM to use the technology during the Malaysia Cup final in December.
The VAR technology was first used in Malaysia during the 2022 AFC Cup final between Kuala Lumpur City FC and Oman’s Al Seeb at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil and it was fully managed by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). — August 28, 2023