Howard Webb will soon be on a mission to make VAR a positive part of the match-day experience for Premier League fans.
The 2010 World Cup final referee, who has spent the last six years helping to improve MLS officials in the USA and Canada, has been confirmed as the PGMOL’s first Chief Refereeing Officer. Webb, 51, will replace outgoing Managing Director Mike Riley - probably when his contract ends at the conclusion of MLS’s season in October.
And he admitted that a big part of his brief will be to open up the lines of communication between referees and supporters who have been alienated by the increasing impact of technology on the game. One of the initiatives introduced in MLS has been to allow media access to the conversations that take place between VAR and match officials.
