VAR in Scotland voted through as SPFL clubs agree timeline and cost-per-club

VAR will be implemented in Scottish football later next season after a majority of SPFL clubs voted in favour of the move during a Hampden meeting on Tuesday.

The use of video assistant referee technology will start in the cinch Premiership following the World Cup in December 2022, with top flight clubs set to share the cost, anticipated to be around £1.2m per season, on a proportional basis based on prize money for final league placing.

It means the Premiership winners face forking out £195k per season, with a sliding scale to the 12th club, which will pay around £67k.

The SPFL will use the same Hawkeye Innovations System currently used in the English Premier League with the introduction delayed until after the World Cup to allow for the necessary upgrades and installations at all Premiership stadia, including fibre.

VAR will be introduced in Scottish football next season after SPFL clubs voted in favour of the move. (Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS Group)

According to reports, 41 clubs voted in favour with just one against.

SPFL chief executive Neil Doncaster said: “I’m very pleased that we received the necessary 75% votes in the cinch Premiership, the cinch Championship, and cinch Leagues 1 and 2, which enable us to forge ahead with VAR technology next season.

"The SPFL chose not to be an early adopter of VAR technology to allow time for teething issues to be ironed out by those leagues who adopted VAR early.

“I believe this was the right decision and that VAR will help referees to ensure tight decisions are more often the right ones and will support a higher standard and more consistent level of decision-making.

“Scottish referees are fully on-board with this innovation and have been overwhelmingly supportive about the introduction of VAR during our consultation process with our partners at the Scottish FA.”

Ian Maxwell, Scottish FA chief executive, added: “Throughout the consultation process we were encouraged that the principle of VAR was supported by clubs, players, coaches and match officials.

“The benefits of VAR are clear and with the commitment of the Scottish FA, SPFL and now the approval of the league’s 42 member clubs, we can now look forward to continuing the implementation process with a view to VAR being a key part of Scottish football’s future.”

The SPFL also plans to use VAR in the Premier Sports Cup semi-finals and finals in January and February of next year, with further discussions planned regarding its use during earlier rounds in future seasons.

Get a year of unlimited access to all The Scotsman's sport coverage without the need for a full subscription. Expert analysis of the biggest games, exclusive interviews, live blogs, transfer news and 70 per cent fewer ads on Scotsman.com - all for less than £1 a week. Subscribe to us today