Is it really just all about the FA maintaining its power?

Was Michael Jackson black or white? What came first, the chicken or the egg? And is Daniel Blazer the sexiest man ever (that’s me by the way)? All these questions have split people for years, and the question of whether we should introduce goal line technology is no different. Harry Redknapp was the latest manager to call for the revolutionary technology after seeing his Spurs side fall foul to yet another goal that wasn’t in their weekend game against Chelsea. After continual mistakes that can prove so costly to a team’s season, surely the FA should go rogue, like a typical young renegade cop in a Hollywood film, and implement the technology regardless of FIFA’s opinion on the matter. But why hasn’t the FA done this?

We all know the ‘reasons’ FIFA has given us for not bringing in the technology. ”The application of modern technologies can be very costly, and therefore not applicable on a global level, the game must be played in the same way no matter where you are in the world.” (Sepp Blatter) But this isn’t really a valid point when so many other sports, such as rugby and cricket, are at a global level and yet use the technological advancements with nothing but positives coming from its use, so why are they so scared to join the list of so many other worldwide sports that use the aid of technology?

The FA continually say that it is out of their hands, football is a world game and the rules have to be the same throughout; I suppose there is a valid argument here, because one of the beauties of football is that it is the same game that we play as adults or children, amateurs or professionals. Yet could the same not be said of the use of better quality footballs, or a well-kept pitch as opposed to a Sunday League mud-bath? Surely another side to the coin is also that the technology will really benefit the other big talking point in football at the moment, ‘respect for referees’. Taking away sole blame from the officials in cases such as Lampard’s recent goal, a goal that could cost Spurs £30 million and win Chelsea the title, would surely benefit the state of the game as a whole at the risk of slightly annoying the governing body that is FIFA.

The FA have control over all aspects of how the game is played and ruled, however their failure to introduce goal line technology in a time where we are cloning sheep, travelling around on trainers with wheels and booking tourist flights on spaceships yet to be built highlights the inertia within the FA. Is the ultimate issue one about maintaining power for the FA, because the camera never lies, so on the big decisions will they matter? Or are they just a ‘bunch of Luddites’.

The article was written by Daniel Blazer for FootballFancast.com. Make sure to check out the latest news, blogs and podcasts at FFC – ed.

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