Technology milestone at UEFA Women’s EURO 2025

Video assistant referee

Video assistant referee (VAR) technology was introduced to the UEFA Champions League in 2019 following extensive testing and referee training. Since then, its use has expanded into other competitions, including all senior men's national team and club competitions, the UEFA Women's Champions League and UEFA Women’s EURO.

How will VAR work at UEFA Women's EURO 2025?

There will be one VAR, one assistant VAR (AVAR) and three video operators at all Women’s EURO 2025 group matches. Then, from the quarter-finals onwards, the number of AVARs will increase to two. The VAR hub for the tournament will be in Nyon.

The VAR team will constantly check for clear and obvious errors relating to the four match-changing situations:

1) Goals
2) Incidents in the penalty area
3) Red cards
4) Mistaken identity

• The VAR team will only intervene if they spot clear and obvious mistakes. The referee can pause play while a decision is being reviewed.
• If the VAR review provides clear evidence of what appears to be a serious mistake in a game-changing situation, the VAR can ask the referee to conduct an on-field review. The final decision must be taken by the referee.
• The VAR is also able to consider any infringement that could have taken place in the immediate build-up to the incident (the attacking phase of play).
• For factual decisions (e.g. offsides, fouls in or outside the penalty area), the VAR can simply inform the referee rather than requesting an on-field review, but it is always the referee who takes the final decision.
• Spectators in the stadium are informed about the review using the big screens.

VAR will be in action at UEFA Women's EURO 2025UEFA via Getty Images

Semi-automated offside technology

Semi-automated offside technology (SAOT) will feature at UEFA Women’s EURO for the very first time in Switzerland. SAOT enables VAR teams to determine offside situations quickly and more accurately, thanks to ten specialised cameras tracking 29 different body points per player. Introduced in the UEFA Champions League in 2022, the system links with the connected Women's EURO match ball to identify the point of ball contact immediately for any offside situations analysed.

Connected ball technology

For the first time at UEFA Women’s EURO, the official match ball will feature adidas connected ball technology, which sends precise ball data to video match officials in real time. Combining player position data with AI, the innovation contributes to UEFA’s SAOT and will be key to supporting faster in-match decisions. Connected ball technology can also help VAR officials to identify every individual touch of the ball, reducing the time spent resolving handball and penalty incidents.

Goal-line technology

UEFA has installed the goal-line technology (GLT) system in all the venues being used for the tournament. The system, which has been used in UEFA's elite club and national team competitions since 2016, deploys seven cameras per goal and uses control software to track the ball within the goal area. Vision-processing techniques and software indicate whether a goal was scored within one second of an action by sending a vibration and visual signal on each match official's watch.