The former Arsenal manager believes it takes too long to make offside decisions with VAR and believes the process must be made quicker.
Arsene Wenger believes offside calls will be decided by technology by next year.
Technology is taking on an increasing role in refereeing decisions across the game, with goalline technology and VAR in effect across the world.
But former Arsenal manager Wenger, who is now in charge of global development at FIFA, believes the next big step forward is just around the corner, with the offside rule soon to be made easier for referees.
Read also: I Asked Suarez To See If Messi Wanted To Join Atletico Madrid – Simeone
What has been said?
Wenger believes VAR has been too slow in making offside decisions and believes the process must be streamlined by the time the 2022 World Cup comes around.
“We must continue to progress in the speed of decision-making, particularly in terms of offside,” he said to reporters.
“In 2022 at the World Cup, we’ll be much better able to make very quick offside decisions. And it will stop the game less because that is what the VAR can be faulted with. There is a real emotional lift, but after that you have to know if you want fair decisions or not.
“There is a good chance that the offside will be automated at the 2022 World Cup. I am bound to secrecy, but this will be the next of the big developments in refereeing.”
Wenger defends VAR
Despite his criticism of VAR, Wenger believes it has a positive impact on the game and has resulted in fewer refereeing errors in big matches.
“I think it’s positive in that if it was announced tomorrow, people would be against it. We realised in the decisive matches that the VAR was able to prevent bad decisions from being made,” he added.
“But there are things that still need to be perfected. VAR is a new process. The level of the VAR people may not be at the level of the referees. But it will come in a few years.
“There is an issue because it requires a lot of people and it is still expensive. VAR is a useful aid and it must remain to make more fair decisions. Before, there were 93 per cent fair decisions and today it is 97%. So that’s hundreds of decisions over an entire championship. It is important.”
