Sport

FIFA ready for touchline technology

Sepp Blatter - file

LONDON, (REUTERS)

GOALLINE TECHNOLOGY WILL be used at next year's World Cup finals if an experiment at this month's Under-17 world championship in Peru is successful, FIFA president Sepp Blatter said yesterday.

"We will definitely use the technology in Germany next year if the experiment works in Peru," Blatter told reporters.

"The technology will also be used along the touchlines to show whether the ball is out of play."

A total of 32 matches are taking place at four venues in the junior championship but Blatter said that in the unlikely event there were no goalline incidents another match would be arranged outside the competition to use the equipment installed at one of the stadiums.

The experiment was sanctioned by the International Association Football Board (IFAB) at its meeting in Llantisant, near Cardiff in February and members of the board would attend the second week of the tournament which runs from September 16 to October 2.

The experiment will then be reviewed by the board at a meeting in Zurich in October and if it has been found to be successful will be sanctioned at its next annual meeting in Lucerne next year before being seen at the World Cup for the first time.

Adidas has developed its "smartball" system that involves balls fitted with electronic chips sending a signal to a wristband or earpiece worn by the referee when the ball has crossed the line.

Blatter also said he is convinced that officiating at World Cup matches would show a big improvement on the standard at the 2002 tournament in South Korea and Japan.

"We have trios of referees and linesmen training and working together now for the World Cup," he said. "I take part of the responsibility for what happened in 2002 because we had trios from all over the world officiating at matches who had not worked together before. I allowed that to happen."