Overview
- FIFA has stationed a primary VAR official and a reserve VAR official inside every World Cup stadium for the remaining matches, while keeping the Video Operations Room at the International Broadcast Centre in Dallas as the main review hub.
- The stadium teams were first used in the France–Morocco quarter‑final and will only assume control if the venue loses its link to Dallas, a change FIFA says does not alter VAR laws or the threshold for overturning on‑field calls.
- The operational change follows a run of high‑profile, technology‑driven controversies — including the Croatia–Portugal offside, Folarin Balogun’s red card and Egypt’s disallowed goal against Argentina — that prompted public complaints from coaches and federations.
- Critics say expanded VAR intervention areas and new data sources, such as a sensor in the ball that detects tiny contacts, have increased reviews and led to decisions that feel overapplied or inconsistent; FIFA refereeing chief Pierluigi Collina has defended the system as within the rules.
- Tournament context: FIFA expanded VAR's remit for this 104‑match World Cup to allow more types of intervention, and experts are urging limits (for example restricting reviews to goals and red cards) to protect referees’ judgment and the game’s flow.