The Endless Goal Line Technology Debate

Another phantom goal in a lower division game has once again renewed the call for goal line technology. Crystal Palace was the victim this year in their match versus Bristol City, affecting the outcome of the game and forcing Director of Officials Keith Hackett to call for the implementation of the technology. As an American sports fan I just don't understand the opposition to it. Here are the typical arguments against it.

Tradition: The old argument, that's been heard in so many other sports that have adopted such technology, is tradition and the idea of human error. The argument goes that it's the biggest sport in the world and there are very few disputed goals, so why the big deal? With the amount of money in the sport worldwide and the endless fight for many clubs to be promoted or relegated its just a matter of time before a missed call effects the outcome of a campaign. What happens if Crystal Palace finished two points out of the promotion group? How important is the goal then, eve if it took place nine months earlier? Let's look at it this way. If Wimbledon, which has as much or more "tradition" than football can adopt replay technology is it really that big of a deal to put a little replay in football?

It Delays the Game: The other theory is that you lose flow if you stop the game for a period of time. How long would it really take to stop the game to review a goal? Is the loss of 1 or 2 minutes as important as a goal that could affect the match? All the referee has to do is stop the game and go to a replay official, like in tennis, rugby or even American sports like the NFL. The Premier League could take a cue from the National Hockey League and their "war room". Station a group of people in a room at Premier League headquarters with TV access to all the goal line replay cameras. They can quickly and easily review the play and report back to the referee via a telephone stationed on the sidelines. How long could this take? Typically not much longer than a few minutes. Station a camera on each post and just have people monitor those cameras.

Technology isn't perfect either: The last argument is the idea that the replay officials can be just as susceptible to human error as the in game official. The simple answer to this point is to have a group of 2 or 3 people review the play who have to come to quick consensus. If not they will report back that the play is inconclusive and the referee decision stands. How difficult is that?

The unfortunate thing is that it's probably going to take a call that really impacts the season for real change to develop. Let's say a late season match between a top four contender or a match that affects Champions League slotting and really impacts a team financially. Beyond that why not get creative? How about trying the technology in some pre-season friendlies? How about trying inventive things like place a chip in the ball and sensors on each post with a red or green light that goes off if the ball passes through completely? It's beyond me why a league that is arguably the biggest sports league in the world is so behind in technology.

When will common sense prevail?