Rules · 7 min read
VAR explained: what it can review, what it cannot, and how a decision is changed
Video review was sold as an end to obvious errors. Six seasons in, the arguments are about interpretation, not technology.
The four reviewable categories
VAR can only intervene in four match-changing situations: a goal or no-goal, a penalty or no-penalty, a direct red card, and mistaken identity when the wrong player is cautioned or sent off. Everything else — a second yellow, a wrongly awarded throw-in, a foul in the build-up to a goal outside the attacking phase — is outside its remit.
That limit is deliberate. The protocol keeps the referee in charge of the game and stops every contested call from becoming a video review.
Check, review, monitor
The VAR team runs a silent check on every incident. If nothing is clearly wrong, play continues and nobody hears anything. If there is a clear and obvious error or a serious missed incident, the VAR recommends a review: either a factual one, which the referee can accept on the headset, or an on-field review at the pitchside monitor.
Only the referee can change the decision. The final signal — a rectangle drawn in the air for a monitor review, or a straight arm for a factual check — is the referee's, not the VAR's.
Where it still goes wrong
Two problems persist. The first is the "clear and obvious" threshold, which is applied differently in different competitions. The second is time: a three-minute review kills momentum and, in a stadium, leaves 60,000 people watching a screen with no explanation.
Semi-automated offside has removed the most mechanical delay. The next frontier is communicating the reasoning to the crowd in real time, which FIFA trialled at the 2025 Club World Cup.
Quick answers
Can VAR review a second yellow card?
No. Second cautions are outside the reviewable categories, even when the first yellow was clearly wrong.
Who makes the final decision?
The on-field referee. VAR can only recommend a review.
Is the VAR in the stadium?
No, VAR officials sit in a remote video operations room, usually in a different city.