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VAR review frequency at World Cup higher than Premier League

Yahoo Sports • 1 min read • Latest: Jun 22, 2026, 2:44 PM

Last updated Jun 22, 2026

VAR review frequency at World Cup higher than Premier League

Summary

The 2026 World Cup features a higher rate of VAR reviews compared to the Premier League. Despite the perception of fewer interruptions at the World Cup, there have been more interventions overall. FIFA's head of referees, Pierluigi Collina, aims for quicker decisions and reduced referee stoppages, influencing the style of VAR use. In the World Cup, the average key incident per game is lower than that of the Premier League, leading to less apparent controversy. VAR interventions per game have decreased from previous tournaments but remain notable.

Source Links

Yahoo Sports

By the Numbers

•Four goals disallowed on VAR review in the World Cup.
•World Cup games feature one key incident on average, compared to three in the Premier League.
•The rate of VAR interventions is 0.33 per game in the World Cup.
•FIFA aims for more free-flowing games under Collina's refereeing philosophy.
•Subjective VAR reviews trend at 0.15 per game in both competitions.

Latest Updates

2:44 PMYahoo Sports — Is VAR being used differently at the World Cup vs the Premier League?

What they're saying

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The stats show that there have been more VAR reviews at the World Cup than in the Premier League. So why does perception suggest the opposite?
— Yahoo Sports

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