Poll: Two in three people want video replays
Reuters - Thursday 01 July 2010, 13:37
JOHANNESBURG - About two-thirds of people
think video replays should be used to avert refereeing blunders
like those that marred two World Cup games at the weekend, a
survey showed on Thursday.
England and Mexico fell victim to howlers by officials in
their second-round matches on Sunday, prompting an apology from
FIFA president Sepp Blatter.
Blatter, who rejected the use of goalline technology just
three months ago, said the game's governing body would now look
again at the issue, although he ruled out using video replays.
The New York-based Nielsen Company surveyed 27,000 people in
55 countries on questions related to football's biggest event,
including whether referees should have video replays to help
them make close calls.
Sixty-five percent of them backed the use of video replays
at the World Cup. Only about one in 10 respondents said the ban
should stay, while the rest were undecided, the research company
said in a statement.
Technology is already used in other major sports such as
cricket and tennis.
Nielsen's online poll showed regional support for video
technology to be used at the World Cup was strongest in South
America, where 79 percent respondents thought FIFA should change
its position.
However, in Ireland, whose team lost a play-off to reach the
World Cup finals after an infamous handball by France's Thierry
Henry, 84 percent of people said video assistance was a good
idea.
The company said online discussion about video replays
soared after the refereeing decisions that hit England and
Mexico at the weekend.
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