CARL O'MALLEY suggests that due to goal-line technology costs it will not be seen in Ireland any time soon
GOAL-LINE TECHNOLOGY was a long time coming, now the wait for it to be implemented in Ireland could be interminable.
The decision yesterday of the International FA Board (Ifab) to sanction the use of technology to assist referees will be welcomed by most. Domestically, however, Irish teams are unlikely to benefit from it for some time, given the financial and logistical constraints Airtricity League clubs operate under.
The FAI declined to officially comment on the decision last night but the association’s board will meet to discuss the implications for Irish football, which look certain to be minimal for now.
The systems approved – Hawk-Eye and GoalRef – will be used for the first time by Fifa in the Club World Cup in Japan in December and after that in next year’s Confederations Cup and then the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
There is no obligation, therefore, on the FAI or any other association to introduce either system for the World Cup qualifiers, which is just as well considering the implementation of either product could cost in the region of €200,000 after a year in which the FAI’s surplus was €1.17 million.
The cost, though, could be shouldered by the FAI, but it is obviously the main reason Airticity League clubs will not be entertaining the idea of adopting technology any time soon, given that the Premier Division champions this year will receive just €100,000 and that many clubs struggle just to pay players and stay afloat in the current climate.
The Ifab’s response to the cost of the systems last night was rather hollow, with both Fifa general secretary Jerome Valcke and counterpart in the FA Alex Horne highlighting “plasma screens” as an example of technology that began its shelf-life exorbitantly expensive but grew ever more affordable over a relatively short space of time.
While Fifa will cover the costs of installing the systems for the aforementioned tournaments and leave the venues with the technology, poorer associations need not hold out hope for a dig out. “The poorer federations have other issues, and we are working with them on various programs to support them,” said Valcke last night.
“The issue of the goal-line technology is not the most important issue for them today.”
Even if there was financial assistance, it is debatable whether grounds in the league would be capable of housing the technology. During Hawk-Eye testing at Southampton’s St Mary’s Stadium in May, for example, 14 high-speed cameras were perched on the stands around the ground to make sure “all angles” were covered.
There would likely be significant logistical impediments to housing that sort of hardware at any number of Irish football venues, such is the condition of some stadiums in the league.
There would also be the issue of security, given the value of the systems, and the cost of implementing either one would therefore increase further with the necessity to improve stadiums sufficiently before paying for the technology that would have to be introduced in all grounds if it was introduced in one.
As it stands, of course, it’s not really something to worry too much about for Irish domestic football and the silence of the FAI and the Airtricity League (director Fran Gavin was also unavailable for comment) last night confirms as much.
With Uefa president Michel Platini currently opposed to technology and prepared to persist with extra officials beside the goal-line, there is no immediate external pressure for change.
Should he be won over or come under pressure from the powerful stakeholders in European football, who will no doubt implement change in the meantime, the FAI and domestic league may have some difficult and expensive decisions to make at a time when a good European run can make such a dramatic difference to domestic coffers.
