Explained: Referees to wear body cams during FIFA Club World Cup but it won't reduce controversies

FIFA has announced that referees at the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup in the United States will wear body cameras as part of a new broadcast feature, offering unique point-of-view footage from officials during matches.

The tournament, set to commence on June 15, will showcase this technology along with enhanced VAR reviews and new goalkeeper rules, though it will not contribute to reducing controversies or controversial decisions in the game.The body cameras, protruding from referees' earpieces, will transmit live footage via a private 5G network to match production teams. FIFA Director of Innovation Johannes Holzmuller clarified that this feature will only be in use at the six NFL stadiums hosting the tournament.Despite the unique visuals and first-person view of match proceedings, the body camera footage will exclude controversial moments and penalty decisions. "The objective is to offer the TV viewers a new experience," said Pierluigi Collina, Chairman of the FIFA Referees Committee.Viewers will be able to see unique angles of goals, saves, and pre-match coin tosses through these cameras, but controversial incidents will be excluded from the broadcast.

Why are controversial visuals going to be excluded?

Explaining the decision to exclude 'controversial' incidents, Collina explained "Let's do things step by step. At the moment...this is a trial. We need to do something new and the simpler the better. So we fixed some rules within a protocol. We will offer these images in the future? Maybe when we learn to run, maybe not, maybe we will do." IFAB, the organization responsible for soccer's laws, has approved the trial of the body camera technology, with the possibility of expanding its use to controversial incidents in future phases.

The tournament will also feature enhanced transparency in VAR decisions, with reviews shown on stadium screens followed by referee announcements over the public address system. Additionally, an improved semi-automatic offside technology will be implemented, utilizing 16 cameras connected to AI technology and algorithms. This system will send audio messages to assistant referees when offside players touch the ball.

The new technology aims to make offside calls quicker and reduce instances of play continuing after clear offside situations until a VAR review.

A significant rule change will affect goalkeepers, who will now have eight seconds to release the ball after picking it up, replacing the previous six-second rule. In the new rule, a violation will result in a corner kick for the opposing team instead of an indirect free kick. Referees will display a five-second warning, by counting down showing the fingers of one hand.