FIFA introduces green card at the World Cup

24/09/2025 13:10:00 ceshi

FIFA plans to trial an innovative green card system at the U20 World Cup as part of its video-assisted match operations.

FIFA will launch a new version of video assistant technology at the U20 World Cup in Chile to make matches fairer and more accessible.

This system is called Football Video Support (FVS), designed to shorten match duration and reduce deployment costs, allowing countries that cannot afford traditional VAR to utilize this technology.

The key difference between FVS and VAR is that the authority to request a review lies with the coach instead of the referee. Each team can request two reviews per match for goals, penalties, direct red cards, or mistaken player identity. To activate, the coach presents a green card to the referee.

FIFA áp dụng thẻ xanh tại World Cup 710110 — FIFA will apply the green card at the U20 World Cup

In fact, the green card has previously been tested in youth tournaments such as the Blue Stars Youth Cup and the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup in Colombia.

Using technology to assist referees worldwide

Football Video Support offers a cost-effective alternative to the Video Assistant Referee system, tailored for competitions with limited personnel and financial resources. pic.twitter.com/azMhuegPIL
— FIFA (@FIFAcom) September 22, 2025

FIFA previously tested the green card at the Blue Stars Youth Cup and the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup. Video: X FIFA

According to FIFA Referees Committee Chairman Pierluigi Collina, the main goal is to reduce lengthy interruptions common with VAR and ease pressure on referees. He emphasized: “Referees need to gain experience in tournaments featuring future stars, and so far FVS has proven very successful.”

This system is compared to field hockey, where teams have limited video review requests. However, the difference lies in the rules: in hockey, each team has one challenge and keeps it if the decision changes; in football with FVS, each team has two challenges per match regardless of success.

The FVS system promises to be a significant advancement, giving coaches a direct voice in reviewing incidents while providing faster and more transparent matches for players, referees, and fans.

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