Championship referees correct 85% of key decisions in the 2023/24 season

Referees in the Championship – arguably the biggest league in the world not to use VAR – have got more than 85 per cent of key decisions correct this season, according to an independent panel.

Figures provided to the Press Association news agency show that 85.6% of the decisions reviewed by the EFL’s Key Match Incident (KMI) panel in the regular Championship campaign were correct – 1,363 out of 1,592, with 229 deemed incorrect. The publication of the statistics comes in the week Wolves called for a vote to scrap VAR in the Premier League.

The Premier League responded to Wolves’ statement by saying it fully supports the continued use of VAR and is working on ways to further improve it. The league points out that this season 96% of key match decisions were correct, compared to 82% in 2018/19, the last season before VAR was introduced in the top flight.

The current campaign is the first in which a KMI panel has been assembled in the Championship, and the data undoubtedly gives an indication of what the level of correct calls in the Premier League might look like if VAR were to be removed.

The average net KMI score for Championship clubs – the number of key decisions that went in a club’s favor compared to the number that went against them – is zero.

Two of the key criticisms of VAR in a Football Supporters’ Association survey last summer were the stadium experience for fans, with just one in 20 rating it as good or very good, while 95% said it the main concern was that VAR had removed the immediate joy and spontaneity of celebrating a goal.

The EFL understands that while the total number of correct key decisions may increase slightly with the introduction of VAR, the stadium experience for supporters, off-field debate and financial aspects are all considerations that need to be taken into account.

Statistics from the 2024 EFL survey also show that 56% of supporters do not want to see VAR introduced in the Championship, rising to 79% in League One and 83% in League Two – an average of 72% of supporters. over the three leagues.

The lack of VAR in the second tier has been criticised, however, with Leeds boss Daniel Farke saying this week his side would have secured automatic promotion had it been in place. He claimed he had received “12 letters of apology” over decisions that had gone against his team.

Bristol City were at the center of several contentious decisions towards the end of the campaign, most notably Rebecca Welch’s decision to award a penalty in extra time at Ashton Gate against Huddersfield’s Ollie Turton for handball, from which Nahki Wells equalised.

Former Huddersfield manager Andre Breitenreiter, whose side were then relegated to League One, claimed the Terriers had received a letter of apology from PGMOL saying the decision was incorrect.

City were also the beneficiaries of a questionable strike against Rotherham United in which Tommy Conway went to ground under a challenge from goalkeeper Dillon Phillips. But either side of the game they conceded a goal to Norwich City’s Borja Sainz who appeared to be offside, Harry Cornick was denied a winner at Carrow Road and Scott Twine also had a goal scored in the match at Stoke.

Asked about the prospect of VAR in the Championship, City head coach Liam Manning said: “If it helps, absolutely. VAR is an interesting one, but if you look at it in terms of some of the results, then of course it helps the game, but in other ways, some of the decisions, the processes and the time involved, which still need to be changed.

“I think it will come eventually just because of what’s on the line and the investment — we’re finally putting on one of the richest games in sports in the playoff final; when there’s so much on the line, you have to be. to do things right.”

Constructive discussions took place between the clubs and the refereeing body Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) throughout the season.

There is an acceptance that mistakes can occur and sometimes there could be confirmation that one does occur, however sources stress that these do not automatically translate into apologies being issued, with apologies understood to be extremely rare.

The KMI Championship panel has seven members in total. Each Thursday – subject to changes when there are midweek rounds – three of the five former player and manager representatives meet, along with one representative each from the EFL and PGMOL.

A correct or incorrect decision is determined by a majority vote of the committee. The results are communicated to the clubs and the referees are informed of each decision which way the representatives on the panel have voted.

Additional detailed feedback is also provided to each match official and their coach. This is just one part of a referee’s performance review, which also includes the designated official and coach reviewing their games through regular match reviews.

The KMI data feeds into the overall assessment that dictates an official’s place in the merit table. Although this does not dictate the selection process for the games, it is one of the factors affecting the referee selection decisions made by the PGMOL.

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