History was made during Wednesday’s Carabao Cup semi-final between Tottenham and Liverpool as referee Stuart Attwell announced a decision by the video assistant referee (VAR) inside the stadium.
It was the first time it has happened in England, with Attwell explaining why Dominic Solanke’s late goal for Spurs was ruled out.
“After a review, Dominic Solanke was in an offside position,” he said over the PA system.
Despite that, Spurs did score through Lucas Bergvall in the 86th minute to win the first-leg tie 1-0.
Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou was not enthused by the decision to make the announcement, telling Sky Sports: “If people think that announcement added anything to the game tonight then I am sorry…
“It used to be you put your flag up and the game goes on, but anyway.”
The decision to make the announcements is part of a trial running for all of the League Cup semi-finals.
As part of it, referees will announce final decisions following a visit to the VAR pitchside monitor, or when rulings are made on factual matters such as accidental handball by a goalscorer and offside offences where the attacker touches the ball.
Such announcements are common in other sports such as rugby union and American football, and the system was also trialled during the 2023 Women’s World Cup.
The Premier League said in a meeting last summer that in-game VAR announcements would be put in place at some point this season.
