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Wang, XingAuthor

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June 10, 2024
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The effect of video assistant referee (VAR) on match performance in elite football: A systematic review with meta-analysis

Publicated to: Proceedings Of The Institution Of Mechanical Engineers Part P-Journal Of Sports Engineering And Technology. - 2024-06-01 (), DOI: 10.1177/17543371241254596

Authors:

Li M; Wang X; Zhang S
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Affiliations

Tsinghua Univ, Div Sports Sci & Phys Educ, Athlet Performance & Data Sci Lab, Beijing 100084, Peoples R China - Author
Univ Politecn Madrid, Fac Ciencias Act Fis & Deporte, Madrid, Spain - Author

Abstract

The increased utilization of the video assistant referee (VAR) system in professional football matches has sparked academic interest, leading to investigations of its impact on various performance variables. This systematic review and meta-analysis sought to assess the impact of VAR on match performance in elite football competitions and determine its effects on diverse variables. We undertook a thorough search of electronic databases and conducted a meta-analysis using the statistical software R. The standardized mean difference (SMD) was employed to quantify the pooled effect of VAR on match performance variables, such as red cards, yellow cards, fouls, offsides, and playing times for both halves and the total game. The analysis included 12 studies, covering 10,088 matches from various elite football competitions. Homogeneity was found in the red cards group, whereas significant heterogeneity was noted in the other groups. VAR implementation correlated with a reduction in fouls (SMD = -0.187) and offsides (SMD = -0.216), indicating statistically significant decreases. Conversely, VAR led to an extension in match playing time, notably in first-half (SMD = 0.406), second-half (SMD = 0.517), and total playing time (SMD = 0.747), with all increases being statistically significant. Our findings indicate that VAR has a significant impact on match performance variables in elite football. Furthermore, the efficacy of VAR interventions differs among organizations and leagues, necessitating future research to ascertain whether VAR's impact is universal or varies with specific competitions.
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Keywords

Association footballBiasDecision makinDecision makingDecisionsDecisions makingsErrorFootballJudging offsideMatch performance analyseMatch performance analysisMeta-analysisOfficiating decisionOfficiating decisionsPerformances analysisRefereeSoccerSport technologiesSportsSports technologyTeam sportTeam sportsTechnologyTracking dataValue engineeringVideo assistant referee

Quality index

Bibliometric impact. Analysis of the contribution and dissemination channel

The work has been published in the journal Proceedings Of The Institution Of Mechanical Engineers Part P-Journal Of Sports Engineering And Technology due to its progression and the good impact it has achieved in recent years, according to the agency Scopus (SJR), it has become a reference in its field. In the year of publication of the work, 2024 there are still no calculated indicators, but in 2023, it was in position , thus managing to position itself as a Q2 (Segundo Cuartil), in the category Engineering (Miscellaneous). Notably, the journal is positioned en el Cuartil Q4 for the agency WoS (JCR) in the category Sport Sciences.

Independientemente del impacto esperado determinado por el canal de difusión, es importante destacar el impacto real observado de la propia aportación.

Según las diferentes agencias de indexación, el número de citas acumuladas por esta publicación hasta la fecha 2025-12-21:

  • Scopus: 3
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Impact and social visibility

From the perspective of influence or social adoption, and based on metrics associated with mentions and interactions provided by agencies specializing in calculating the so-called "Alternative or Social Metrics," we can highlight as of 2025-12-21:

  • The use of this contribution in bookmarks, code forks, additions to favorite lists for recurrent reading, as well as general views, indicates that someone is using the publication as a basis for their current work. This may be a notable indicator of future more formal and academic citations. This claim is supported by the result of the "Capture" indicator, which yields a total of: 14 (PlumX).

With a more dissemination-oriented intent and targeting more general audiences, we can observe other more global scores such as:

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    Leadership analysis of institutional authors

    This work has been carried out with international collaboration, specifically with researchers from: China.

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