Instant replay is coming to world soccer, and Major League Soccer could be the first league to try it out.
FIFA President Sepp Blatter recently called for a video replay system to be tested in 2015 in one of the world’s domestic leagues, and MLS is throwing its name into the hat.
The league has been a strong proponent of using technology in soccer where it enhances the game, and the latest news continues that trend. In an interview with SI.com on Thursday, Garber said he told FIFA that MLS is interested in becoming the first pro soccer league to experiment with a video replay system that would allow coaches to challenge referee decisions.
“I would love to be able to do that," Garber told SI.com. "[MLS deputy commissioner] Mark Abbott was out in Zurich at a meeting last week [at FIFA headquarters] and let folks in Zurich know that we’d be happy to work with them to be that league. I don’t know what their plans are to experiment with that, but I believe the time has come for there to be a mechanism so that games are not determined by [referee calls] that are not right.”
Under the new system a coach would have the right to challenge a refereeing decision once or twice per half when the game is stopped, according to Blatter.
MLS can only introduce the video replay system after the sport's governing body for the laws of the game - the International Football Association Board – offers its approval.
Would a video replay system be good for the game? Let us know in the comments below.
