UEFA have this afternoon announced that a new semi-automated offside technology will be utilised in the Champions Group stages this season [ESPN].
Over the past few years, we have started to see the use of technology in football ramp up, with goal-line technology and the video assistant referee (VAR) system becoming prominent in leagues across the globe.
As of this season, the Scottish Premiership will also be introducing VAR, which is expected to officially be put in place later in the year.
Outwith Scottish Football, Celtic have had a brief taste and at times benefitted from VAR in European competition, when taking part in the Europa League.
As we continue to become acclimatised to the more regular use of technology in the game, it also continues to develop with new advancements each year.
The latest upgrade in technology that has been announced by UEFA is the ‘Semi-Automated Offside Technology (SAOT)’, which will be used for the first time in next season’s Champions League group stages.
The Artificial Intelligence based system will replace VAR’s current manually decided offside calls, making decisions quicker and more accurately.
ESPN have explained in detail exactly how this system will work, stating: “A sensor will be placed in the centre of match ball, recording data 500 times a second to detect when the ball has been kicked. All players will be mapped to create an AI model of their position — a similar method to goal-line technology.
“The time needed to make a VAR offside decision should be reduced from an average of 70 seconds to 25, while fans inside the stadiums and viewers watching on television will be provided with a 3D animation to clearly show the offside.”
Latest changes set to impact Celtic as return to UCL awaits.
Of course, the 2022/23 season marks Celtic’s return to the world’s biggest club competition after earning direct entry from winning last campaign’s Scottish Premiership title.
Ange Postecoglou and his squad will discover the three other sides they will face in the UCL group stages later this month as all clubs involved prepare to welcome in the new technology.
On paper, this new innovation by UEFA sounds like a great plan to attempt to cut out any mistakes and the time it takes to make a decision on offsides with VAR.
It remains to be seen how effective this system will be in this year’s competition and if it should be something fans will need to get used to going forward.
However, what we do know is that the Bhoys will be part of one of the few clubs utilising the new technology in this season’s Champions League group stage.
It should certainly be interesting to see how this goes down!
In other news, “He has a lot of qualities” – Celtic defender continues to impress manager on second loan spell.
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