For its tournaments, particularly the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™, FIFA intends to use video assistant refereeing systems, subject to approval by The International Football Association Board (The IFAB) in March 2018. In the course of the trials with video assistant referees (VARs), it became clear how important it is to make correct decisions regarding the possible offside position of a player in one of the reviewable situations (particularly when a goal is scored). To this end, calibrated offside lines are requested to offer support in decision-making.
FIFA calls for providers to offer a solution for a calibrated virtual offside line that will be made available to the VAR in order to assist with decision-making for possible offside positions.
Project The provider must be able to instantly (an acceptable delay of a few seconds may be discussed) provide an offside line to the VAR that truly reflects the player’s position in relation to the goal line. This virtual line will be superimposed on broadcasting images from one main and possibly several other (predetermined) angles.
The provider will also be required to depict one or two lines generated from tracking data (provided by a selected provider) that should, at all times, provide the VAR with guidance on whether an offside position exists or not. For the avoidance of doubt, the tracking data will be used as an indicator but the lines showing the last player must be manually adjusted by the referee to reflect the true position.
Process Providers shall present their solution to FIFA as per the timeline below. Part of the tender process will be a third-party validation of the offered solutions by a FIFA research partner in order to assess how accurate and repeatable the offside lines of different providers are. It is imperative that a working product (no prototypes or products in development) be demonstrated in a live scenario in the course of this demonstration. The exact location and event will be closely coordinated between the provider and FIFA. If successful in the first phase, the provider should be available and capable of delivering its system for live testing during the FIFA Club World Cup UAE 2017.
Timeline
Phase 1
Deliverable
Until 06.10.2017
Expression of interest and presentation of solutions
Until 31.10.2017
Assessment in a live environment to be agreed on between the provider and FIFA. Validation of technology in use
Until 06.11.2017
Creation of a shortlist and fine-tuning of requirements for phase 2
Phase 2
Deliverable
Until 13.11.2017
Provision of detailed proposal for 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™
06.-16.12.2017
Final test of selected solution(s) in the live environment during the FIFA Club World Cup UAE 2017 and assessment of performance
Until 28.02.2018
Selection of provider for the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™
Companies wishing to present a solution should contact technology@fifa.org.