Tokyo 2020: Will there be VAR in men's and women's Olympic soccer?

The Men’s and Women’s Soccer Tournaments at the 2020 Summer Olympic Gameshavebegun onJuly 21and will end on August 7, 2021.Besides the host city of Tokyo, the soccer games will also take place inKashima, Saitama, Sapporo, Rifu, and Yokohama.FIFA-affiliated associations can send to the event teams.

There are no limitations on the age for the women’s teams, whereas the men’s teams are limited to a maximum of three overage (over the age of 24) players who were born on or afterJanuary 1, 1997.The men’s competition is normally limited to under-23 players, but, FIFA opted to retain the players’ limitation born on or after 1 January 1997 as a result of the postponement ofthe Olympics.

Brazil will attempt to defend theircrown after becoming the Rio de Janeiro2016 champions, whileGermanyarethe defending champion in the women’s competition.However, they did not qualify for this year’sSummer Olympics after being defeated bySweden in the2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup Quarter-Finals.

Will there be VAR in men’s and women’s Olympic soccer?

VAR technology at the 2018 World Cup. (Getty)

For the first time in history, the Olympics will employ the Video Assistant Refereesystem (VAR). The use of VARin the Olympics was approved in June 2020 by FIFA.TheFIFA committee of referees havedesignated 99 game officials from 51 different nations to officiatethe Tokyo 2020 Olimpic Soccer Tournaments. There will be25 referees, 50 assistant referees, 20 VARofficials, and four support referees.

A team of technical trainers, including FIFA referees and video assistant referees, fitness trainers, physiotherapists, and sports scientists, will regularly and carefully monitor and prepare the designated match officers for the games before and during the Olympic games.

FIFAhope that the introduction of VAR technology at the Tokyo 2020 soccer competition, will be a new key step towards theWorld Cup 2022 in Qatar, as well as theWomen’s World Cup 2023 in Australia and New Zealand.