KUALA LUMPUR – Penang FC admits that internet connectivity could be an issue that its Penang City Council Stadium may face in this season’s Malaysia Super League, with the implementation of the video assistant referee (VAR) system.
The introduction and implementation of the VAR system this season are estimated to have cost the Malaysian Football League (MFL) a whopping RM9.7 million.
Speaking to Scoop, Penang FC’s general manager, Jeffrey Chew Gim Eam, said that the club’s home venue lacks some of the top-notch facilities found in most Super League clubs.
The Penang City Council Stadium was constructed in 1945 after the end of the Second World War and was completed in 1948.
The stadium was then expanded by the British government in 1950 and underwent further renovation in 1953 and has been the home stadium for Penang FC for the past 76 years.
“The stadium that we are using is iconic, and we are proud of preserving it for all these years. But we need to admit the fact that our stadium is not equipped like some football clubs across the country with the best facilities.
“We are really happy that MFL is going to introduce mobile VAR in the Super League this season, but internet connectivity is going to be a challenge for us and might cause some issues, but we hope that nothing like that happens.
“However, we have come up with a plan to test the usage of VAR by playing several friendlies in our stadium, starting with a friendly against Kedah FC this month.
“Over the years, we have had many results on the pitch that were not in our favour, and I have a feeling that VAR can make a change for our team this season,” said Jeffrey when contacted.
VAR was used for the first time in Malaysia when KL City FC took on Oman’s Al Seeb in the AFC Cup final at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil in 2022.
However, the system was brought in by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) just for the final that year.
Recently, Singapore became the tenth affiliate under AFC to introduce VAR when the S-league kicked off this season.
The other AFC affiliates that have implemented the use of VAR in their leagues are Thailand, Vietnam, Australia, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, and the United Arab Emirates.
VAR requires eight cameras and good internet connectivity at venues, while a match using the system needs at least six officials. – April 12, 2024