FIFA gives referees 'final word' on goal-line technology, defeats point of goal-line technology

Soccer's governing body isn't that big on technology, which is why you occasionally see the odd refereeing mistake (or two). Fans may have hoped that the goal-line experiments at this month's Club World Cup would be the dawn of a new era in which computers are trusted as final arbiters. But it's clear that FIFA isn't ready to go that far just yet. Secretary General Jerome Valcke has announced that referees will get to decide 90 minutes before kick-off whether to use the Hawkeye and GoalRef systems, and will have the authority to overrule the systems' evidence during the game. We're still hopeful that the men in black will accept the help of this technology, but if they don't, we may have to switch to a more computer-literate pastime.

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Source: PhysOrg (AP)