HOW THE ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE TABLE WOULD LOOK LIKE IF VAR WASN’T USED: ARSENAL AND LEICESTER GREATEST WINNERS

Richard BoadiJune 14, 2022

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A new set of statistics show that Arsenal could have finished in Champions League places had the Video Assistant Referee not been in use during the concluded season

The introduction of the Video Assistant Referee into football has not been without controversy. The VAR, as it is commonly referred to, has been in use in the top-flight of English football since the 2019/2020 season.

It is used to review decisions on the credibility of goals, whether there was an offside or a foul in the build-up. It is also used to check whether there was a dismissible offence or a red card offence.

Premier League referee Kevin Friend consults the Video Assistant Referee in a past match.

VAR is a double-edged sword that has seen teams benefit and lose in equal measure. Planet Football and ESPN took into account a hypothetical season that the VAR wasn’t in use. The algorithm uses the first VAR call that was used in a game. The report argues that the subsequent calls in the game couldn’t have been possible because the direction of the whole game was altered.

Arsenal are the biggest benefactors in the new table as they could have qualified for Champions League football. Leeds meanwhile survived relegation by a whisker but in the new table, they could have been relegated.

Here’s how the full table without VAR looks like: