By Levy Masiteng
The Minister of Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC), Gayton McKenzie, has announced that National Treasury has approved an initial allocation of R20 million to support the rollout of Video Assistant Referee (VAR) technology in South African football.
This milestone follows a successful fact-finding mission to Spain, where SAFA VAR project leader Daniel Bennett and McKenzie’s Special Advisor Charles Cilliers assessed the operations of quality, which is one of four shortlisted global VAR suppliers.
The delegation said it was impressed by the quality of the centralised VAR Hub, a remote production facility equipped with state-of-the-art infrastructure.
According to the department, they observed live video support and broadcast operations during a women’s Primera Federación Division 2 match and were impressed with FIFA’s commendation of the company’s compliance standards.
Bennett and Cilliers also visited the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) headquarters, where they witnessed a full VAR operation, including Hawkeye technology.
The department mentioned that four potential companies have been shortlisted as potential service providers.
This included Quality Media in Spain, Hawkeye Innovations from the United Kingdom, MediaPro from Portugal and Rigour from China.
“On Saturday, Bennett travelled to Barcelona to observe a live remote production workflow and transmission of the women’s fixture between Barcelona and Real Madrid at the Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium. This provided real-time insight into Quality’s broadcast and VAR integration capabilities,” the department said.
The experience solidified their commitment to introducing VAR in South Africa.
“Next year you will be seeing VAR. When we introduce it, it must be foolproof, and our referees must understand it,” McKenzie said.
“The aim is to pilot the technology in the Nedbank Cup semifinals and final next year, with South Africa already boasting several CAF- and FIFA-certified VAR officials.”
Bennett emphasised that the players, officials, and fans deserve correct decisions.
“South Africa has one of the best leagues on the continent, and it is time we join the world’s leading competitions in implementing VAR,” he added.
The introduction of VAR is part of DSAC’s broader mandate to strengthen integrity, fairness, and technological advancement across South African sport.
With the R20 million allocation, McKenzie said the SAFA will move forward with final quotations for hardware, software, and operational costs, paving the way for a more transparent and fairer game.
INSIDE POLITICS