SFA bring in aviation experts to help referees

The Scottish FA has hired aviation experts to improve communication between VAR officials for the new football season.

Top referees in Scotland met with two pilots to help them stay calm during high-pressure situations, according to Willie Collum, the SFA’s head of refereeing.

In preparation for the new league season, which kicks off on Saturday, the goal is to improve communication between officials at the Video Assistant Referee Center and those at stadiums.

In October, Collum will be in charge of Scotland’s officials for the third time while VAR will have been in place there for three years.

People in football would also say it was life or death, he joked.

“But we need to work really hard with our VAR center teams to understand how they’re communicating, how to remain calm, how to think critically, and how to be really rational when we’re looking at that.

These are the levels we’ll reach. We are willing to make any improvement possible.

Collum claims that communication, rather than simply talking to one another, was the main takeaway from that visit. Collum recommends developing more specific communication strategies.

Was it a question that the VAR was asking the AVAR to answer so that the AVAR could express their opinion without leading the AVAR?

These are “absolutely crucial things,” the statement read. Again, though, we depend on the VARs and AVARs to operate in a battle.

The rules and laws of the game are constantly changed, and this season no exception. Fans should be on the lookout for: