iPhone Became the New Referee of the English Premier League: He Will Now Make Offside Decisions!

Türkiye is not the only country where the accuracy of referee decisions and the VAR system are discussed. Because the English Premier League, which is touted as the biggest league in football, decided to make a critical change in the VAR system, especially after the mistakes made last season.

iPhone Will Be Used in Offside Detections in the English Premier League

As it is known, offside positions were frequently discussed in the English Premier League in the 2023-2024 season. In this context, the accuracy of the VAR system used by referees was questioned and calls were made for the league management to take action on the issue.

Apparently, the wishes of the football clubs and especially the fans were met. Because the league management will use a new system consisting of Apple’s iPhone models to help with offside decisions starting from the 2024-25 season. The system, called ‘Dragon’, was developed by Genius Sports and its subsidiary Second Spectrum, which provides a lot of data for the NBA.

A fleet of at least 28 iPhones will be used in Premier League matches, the oldest of which is the iPhone 14 model. These phones will be protected with waterproof cases and equipped with fans to prevent them from overheating. In this way, it will help referees in offside decisions by shooting high frame rate videos from different angles on the field.

Offside detection will not be Dragon’s only ability. This system will track all football players on the field in detail and provide data on many points such as body lines, muscle mass and even skeletal structure. Finally, let us note that, as mentioned above, this system will work integrated with VAR.

So what do you think about this issue? Don’t forget to share your opinions with us in the comments section below!