Artificial intelligence to report the out of the game, the technology will debut during the Qatar World Cup

For the first time ever, FIFA will use artificial intelligence to monitor and report offside cases. The novelty will be introduced during the next Qatar World Cup.

FIFA talks about a semi-automatic system. Artificial intelligence will make the referees’ work easier, but it will not replace them. The final decision will always be made by the VAR staff .

The ball that will be used during the World Cup will be equipped with a special sensor, able to communicate its exact position about 500 times per second, with an accuracy that will leave no room for doubt. Added to this are intelligent cameras, which will allow you to accurately determine the position of the ball and the players, minimizing the risk of referee errors. The ball, supplied by Adidas, is able to communicate its position about 50 times per second.

The AI ​​monitors and tracks 29 different body parts of each player. In more complicated cases, knowing the exact position of your hands and heels can also make a difference in determining whether an action is offside or not.

The semi-automatic system will report all suspicious situations to the VAR staff. The field staff will therefore analyze the videos and data, confirming or not the interpretation of artificial intelligence. It is a real revolution for the world of football. The history of football has too often been influenced by ‘dubious’ referee decisions – sometimes outright blatant mistakes – which have sometimes polluted the outcome of matches, provoking the frustration of fans.

The system designed by FIFA is even capable of creating a three-dimensional animation to illustrate offside cases. The latter solution serves to explain to the public why artificial intelligence has made a certain decision. The images will, in fact, be broadcast on the maxi-screens of the stadium and will then be re-proposed also during the live television.