WATCH ex-Rangers boss' rant in full as coach airs fury…

WATCH ex-Rangers boss' rant in full as coach airs fury at VAR's absence

Former Rangers manager Philippe Clement has made a powerful case for the introduction of VAR in the Championship.

The Norwich City boss was left frustrated after his team's 2-1 defeat to West Brom in the league opener.

🗣️ “That’s why I have this, so leagues in the world that have VAR. Albania, Algeria, Argentina…” 🔰 #NCFC boss Philippe Clement lists the 81 countries in the world that have VAR following the #WBA decision 📺 https://t.co/5YrcaarEq4 pic.twitter.com/n3fJ35CsGf

— The Pink Un (@pinkun) August 21, 2026

Aune Heggebo's controversial goal, which led to a two-game EFL ban for "successful deception of a match official", was a key talking point. However, the officials who missed the incident escaped punishment.

Clement seized on the controversy to make a compelling seven-minute plea for VAR in the Championship. He said: "I think the league creates its own problems by not having VAR."

The Belgian manager, who took charge at Carrow Road last year, believes VAR would have prevented such incidents.

He said: "I didn’t want to go into that after the game because you want to focus on the team and the things we could do better, and clearly there are things the referees could have done better.

"But I know it’s real time, it goes fast, and there are errors made by human beings. - that’s why there’s VAR."

To underline his point, Clement asked his analyst to compile a list of every country using the technology. He said: "So the next morning, you’re still gutted about things, and then I asked my analyst to look up in which leagues around the world there is VAR.

"So that’s why I have this list."

“These are the leagues in the world that have VAR: Albania, Algeria, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil—two leagues—Bulgaria, Chile, China, Colombia—two leagues—Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Egypt, England—one league, only the Premier League—Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany—two leagues—Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Italy—two leagues—Japan—two leagues—Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, Malaysia, Mauritania, Mexico, Morocco, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Paraguay, Peru, Poland, Portugal—two leagues—Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Scotland, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea—two leagues—Spain—two leagues—Switzerland, Thailand—two leagues—Tunisia, Turkey, UAE, Ukraine, Uruguay, USA, Uzbekistan, and Venezuela."

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He added: "So all these leagues have VAR. There are countries that have never played in a World Cup here.

"It’s madness for me that there’s no VAR in the Championship."

Clement believes the league’s decision to punish Heggebo only strengthens his argument. He added: "Everyone wants an honest game, so the league wants an honest game too.

"That’s why they issue a ban to the player, but it could have been avoided, because the rest of the world is already doing this. I cannot believe that, in five years’ time, there will not be VAR in the Championship.

"Or in three years’ time."

The 51-year-old also highlighted the use of technology at the World Cup and in the Championship play-offs. He said: "You see evolution in the World Cup.

"There is a ball with a chip in it, which means errors are reduced further, and that’s the evolution now. In six months it will be better, and in one year it will be better again.

"But those referees also need to learn it somewhere. They need a first step, and that should be the Championship, or even lower.

"In this league, there is VAR in the play-offs, because suddenly it becomes important to have an honest game. But not for the 46 games before that.

"So, yes, I really don’t understand why there is no VAR."

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