Smartball Technology

[carrickharp]

Goal-line technology will be used in next year's World Cup finals if an experiment later this month proves successful, FIFA president Sepp Blatter has said.

Four stadia are being fitted out with adidas' 'smartball' technology for the FIFA Under-17 world championships in Peru which will see the referee sent a signal every time the ball goes out of play or into the goal.

Delegates from the International Board will attend the tournament to monitor the experiment and a decision on introducing the system for the World Cup will be taken at a meeting in October.

Blatter told a media briefing in London: "We will definitely use the technology in Germany next year if the experiment works in Peru.

"The International Board will attend that last week of the competition in Peru in order to see how the system works.

"We will then make a decision at a meeting in Zurich in October."

The tournament in Peru will see 32 matches played with the smartball system where the ball contains a microchip which sends a signal whenever it passes over sensors in the touchline.

The referee is alerted by a device worn on his wrist and should then be in a position to make the correct decision.

The FA, one of the members of the International Board - the body which governs football's rules - have already indicated they will back efforts to bring in the technology in time for next year's World Cup in Germany.

The system should bring an end to controversies over goal-line decisions such as the one in 1966 which helped England win the biggest prize in football.

Blatter added that FIFA were reluctant to go any further down the road to bringing in new technology.

He said: "This goal-line technology is enough. Football must keep its human face and must accept errors. If we start to make it too scientific this game will lose its fascination."

[sligoman]

It's about time something like this came into play. Although, I'd still prefer to use cameras like in rugby

[Bald Student]

Where, on the ball, will the microchip be located? It's hardly possible to suspent it in the centre. If it's in the leather will which side of the ball crosses the line first make a difference?

Rugby has the perfect system. It should simply be copied.

[Aberdonian Stu]

Do you mean the on=over system? For the most part I'd agree but for the goal lie it would be tricky, especially with penalties as the goalie has to stand on the line.

[noby]

Where, on the ball, will the microchip be located? It's hardly possible to suspent it in the centre. If it's in the leather will which side of the ball crosses the line first make a difference?

I'm sure they've thought it through a bit, and not just bung a sensor on one side of the ball. Perhaps there'll be several, on different sides of the ball.

Rugby has the perfect system. It should simply be copied.

[old ground]Rugby has a good system for rugby, where there's a stop in play anyway, to decide either a try or a 22 (or whatever)
It's not as simple as just copying it.

As for on=over, they shouldn't change the rules of the game to suit technology.