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Topics: Premier League, Football, VAR
Ryan Smart
The Premier League will reportedly introduce a radical new rule change that will be in use from the 2024/25 season.
England's top flight has undergone a series of major changes over recent years - most notably the introduction of VAR which has caused division among fans ever since its first game.
Managers can also now receive yellow and red cards, while the Premier League are also attempting to crack down on time wasting by preventing ball assistants from returning the ball to players, instead forcing them to sit behind LED boards while play is ongoing.
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Now, another new rule is being introduced to make offside decisions faster and more streamlined - using artificial intelligence technology in order to do so.
That is according to The Times, who report that 'force fields' and AI will be used to more easily identify when attackers are ahead of defenders in tight offside situations.
In recent seasons, VAR officials have drawn lines between each touchline to determine exactly where players' body positions are, with the technology then doing the rest to reach a final decision.
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The Times add that the Premier League have agreed a deal with Second Spectrum, an American software company, who will provide the technology.
It is hoped that the technology will be in place after one of autumn international breaks, meaning fans won't see it in place from the start of the 2024/25 season.
In addition, officials hope it will cut delays in offside decisions by 'an average of 31 seconds', with the technology capturing 10,000 'surface mesh data points' - a set of triangles which form a surface covering of an object - which is hoped will make offside decisions far more accurate.
It is part of the PGMOL's plan to bring in semi-automated offsides, which have already been approved by all 20 Premier League clubs amid a resolution submitted by Wolves to scrap VAR entirely in the top flight of English football.