Another CIS football association, the Kyrgyz Football Union (KFU), has chosen SLOMO.TV as the technology provider for its national project to introduce a Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system.
Following previous implementations at the Kazakhstan Football Federation (KFF), the Football Federation of Tajikistan (FFT) and the Georgian Football Federation (GFF), the SLOMO.TV mobile complex - a VAR van based on the FIFA-certified videoReferee®-8F solution - has now become the first VAR system in Kyrgyzstan.
A SLOMO.TV training course on the VAR system installation and management was held from 10 to 14 June at the Kyrgyz Football Union (KFU) office in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
Alexander Kalinin, one of SLOMO.TV's leading specialists in video refereeing, trained the representatives of the KFU Referees Department on how to set up and work with the VAR system, comprising an 8-channel videoReferee® server and Academy simulator.
The training consisted of theoretical classes on functionality, configuration and interaction with the system, as well as practical tasks performed on the Academy system.
The practical sessions included practicing interacting with the system, reviewing and analyzing different moments of the match in the RRA and, in particular, communicating between the VAR and other members of the video refereeing team via a Hollyland intercom system in different scenarios.
On June 20, the videoReferee® system was successfully tested at the Kurmanbek stadium in Jalal-Abad during a match between the U-16 youth teams Muras United and Barça Academy.
The VAR system was approved under the guidance of Asian Football Confederation's VAR officer Zhakhongir Saidov and representatives of the KFU's Referees Department - Spartak Danilenko and Artyom Skopintsev. All experts agreed that the tests had been successfully completed.
Introduction of VAR in Kyrgyzstan is a historic event for the country and Central Asian Football Association (CAFA). In the near future, the VAR systems will be implemented in a number of stadiums throughout Kyrgyzstan. This summer's CAFA U-20 Championship, to be held at the Kurmanbek Stadium in Jalal-Abad from 5-13 July, will see the first official use of VAR. Six national teams from Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan, Iran, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan are participating.
