After many years of deliberation and debate, soul-searching and chest humping, it seems like goal-line technology is going to become part of the soccer world. For all those who are in favour, and there are many, there are those who are dead against it. Those who want to see goal-line technology come into force are anxious to put an end to the decades of arguments around goals that should have been given and should not have been given.

Those against the introduction of goal-line technology claim that it is the first step into reducing soccer to a glorified video game which will eventually reduce the human element and the drama that is soccer, instead making it a game, where the outcome will be increasingly decided by computerised technology and not by the skill of the players.

Although nothing has been confirmed as yet it does appear that goal-line technology could be introduced in the English Premier League as early as halfway through the coming season after initial approval was granted by the International Football Association Board (IFAB) at a recent meeting held in Zurich, Switzerland.

What is known for sure is that goal-line technology is scheduled to be used at the FIFA Club World Cup tournament to be held in December. If all goes according to plan, then the technology will be in place at the 2013 Confederations Cup.

Currently there are two systems under scrutiny by FIFA. The first, Hawk-Eye, has been used in tennis tournaments for many years and does provide excellent results. Anyone who watched Wimbledon at the weekend will have observed that players are allowed to dispute a total of three calls to each set; something of a similar nature will obviously have to be used in soccer with an extra two linesmen being involved in keeping track of the equipment.

The other system that FIFA are looking at goes by the title of GoalRef, and as the name suggests, has been developed specifically for soccer.

As far as the Premier league clubs are concerned, the ball is in the court as far as deciding which system they choose to adopt. The only stipulation that FIFA and the English league will have is that all clubs have the same system in place before the technology can be implemented.

Soccer fans throughout the world await future developments with great interest.

Copyright © Innovanaut – All rights reserved