The Rwanda Football Federation (FERWAFA) has announced that the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) technology, which helps improve refereeing decisions, will start being used next year.
This was confirmed during a press briefing held by FERWAFA President Shema Ngoga Fabrice and Hadji Yussuf Mudaheranwa, the head of the Rwanda Premier League.
The announcement comes at a time when there have been ongoing complaints about refereeing decisions in Rwandan football, with many clubs often claiming they were unfairly treated by referees, leading to disciplinary actions against some of them.
Shema Fabrice stated that starting next year, VAR technology will be introduced to help address these challenges.
He said: “In our region, the VAR branch is based in Tanzania, but I told them we can’t send just two referees out of 200. I told them we would request that the Tanzanian VAR branch also come to Rwanda so that we can train more referees.”
He continued: “If all goes well, we will start testing the system [VAR] during the first leg of the league so that by the second leg, we will begin using it officially. What I can tell you is that we are in the process of reforming our refereeing system, and by February, during the return leg, we will have VAR supporting our matches.”
Shema Fabrice, who hasn’t been at the helm of FERWAFA for long, continues to show great ambition to elevate Rwandan football, especially after taking office at a time when the sport faced various administrative and officiating challenges.
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