Safa has confirmed the receipt of R20 million from the Department of Sport to finally bring VAR to South Africa. Photo: Backpagepix
Image: Backpagepix
The implementation of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system in South African football is edging closer to reality.
That was the assertion of Safa NEC member and chairperson of the finance committee Mxolisi Sibam, who confirmed the association had received government funding to implement the refereeing system.
A few months ago, Sports Minister Gayton McKenzie announced that his office would assist Safa in rolling out VAR to help curb refereeing controversies that have cost teams silverware, status and points.
However, there had been uncertainty over whether the funding had been transferred, with Safa previously not confirming receipt of the money despite McKenzie’s public commitment and his department’s decision to send referees and media personnel to Spain last year to study the implementation process.
McKenzie has now followed through on that promise, with Safa confirming during a two-day NEC meeting at its headquarters south of Johannesburg over the weekend that funding had been received from the minister’s office.
“I can confirm that we have received the funding from the minister. The money is in the bank,” Sibam said.
“I also want to state that it is in a separate bank account that doesn’t include other transactions of Safa. We have to comply with Safa and government regulations when reporting on the money.”
Sibam revealed the amount Safa received from the government and said preparations for the rollout had already begun, with former referees including Victor Gomes and Daniel Bennett involved in the process.
“Yes, the government has been very generous with us,” Sibam said.
"They’ve given us R20 million to implement VAR. At the current NEC meeting, we are going to finalise approval of that budget so we can continue with the work.
“The work started seven months ago. It’s not that we are only starting now. Fortunately, (on Sunday), the people who will be in charge of it indicated they are targeting the start of next season for VAR to be operational.”
With the current season ending in less than three weeks and the expanded Fifa World Cup in North America taking place during the off-season, there appears to be sufficient time to complete the rollout. Sibam, however, stopped short of committing to a firm implementation date, while stressing Safa’s urgency in dealing with the matter.
“The fact that we are at this point and have accepted the money from the government shows Safa’s commitment,” he said. “It must also be noted that Safa is the leading association in Africa, so we cannot be left behind. Already, there are four associations on the continent that have VAR.
“So, we cannot claim to lead while falling behind in other aspects. We want to lead in every aspect of football. We are very committed to ensuring that VAR becomes a reality in our country.”
Asked whether there had been engagement with the PSL, which is expected to be the primary user of the system, Sibam said discussions would take place.
“I am not part of the refereeing committee, but obviously there will be contact with the PSL as an end user,” he said.
Sibam added that Safa also wanted other competitions, including the Hollywoodbets Super League (HSL), to benefit from VAR.
“It won’t only be the PSL that will be end users. We also have the Hollywoodbets Super League (HSL), which will benefit,” Sibam said. “Our target end users are two – the PSL and HSL – as well as all our national competitions.”