Skip to main content

Vanishing spray paint approved for UEFA games

This spray is very useful," said UEFA President Michel Platini after the UEFA Referees Committee approved introducing vanishing spray paint for UEFA matches.

Vanishing spray paint, used by the referee to mark the spot a free-kick is taken and the minimum required distance for the defensive wall, is to be used in UEFA competition games following a successful trial.

After a successful test at the 2014 UEFA European Under-17 Championship in Malta, I am pleased that the Referees Committee decided to approve the use of the vanishing spray in our senior competitions," explained UEFA President Michel Platini.

"As we all saw at the World Cup, this spray was very useful in helping the referee in free-kick situations, and I am sure we will see similar results in our matches this season. I take this opportunity to praise the late Argentina Football Association president Julio Grondona who initially pushed the International Board to use the vanishing spray a few years ago. His contribution and determination was instrumental in the implementation process."

UEFA's chief refereeing officer Pierluigi Collina added: "We initially discussed the introduction of the vanishing spray with all the top UEFA referees at our winter course in Lisbon last February and then tested it in Malta at the 2014 UEFA European Under-17 Championship in May. Following the successful test and the Referees Committee approval, we will already use the spray in the UEFA Super Cup next week.

"In my opinion, there is no doubt that the spray allows the referees to have an easier control in free-kick situations, as players cannot try to make the wall distance shorter by using the so-called 'penguin walk' tactic. Once the defensive wall has been correctly positioned, the free-kick will be taken with the distance respected.

The vanishing spray paint received positive feedback when it was first tried out at the UEFA European Under-17 Championship in Malta this summer, and will be used for the first time in a UEFA club competition in the UEFA Super Cup game between Real Madrid CF and Sevilla FC in Cardiff on 12 August. It will be deployed in the UEFA Champions League from the play-off round onward, and in the UEFA Europa League from the start of the group stage. The spray will also be used in the European Qualifiers for UEFA EURO 2016, which begin in September.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Mario Balotelli: AC Milan reject claims the striker is about to leave

AC Milan have released a statement to deny speculation that Italy striker Mario Balotelli could leave in January. They were responding to reports in Italy that Milan president Silvio Berlusconi had decided to sell him. "AC Milan firmly and absolutely deny statements that have been attributed to the chairman about Mario Balotelli being put on the transfer list," the Serie A club's statement  said . The ex-Man City striker has scored six goals in 12 league games this season. He moved to the San Siro in January for an initial fee of 22m euros (£19m). Last season he racked up 12 goals for the seven-time European champions in only 13 Serie A appearances.

Al-Jazeera demands Egypt release four journalists

  Qatar-based broadcaster Al-Jazeera has demanded the release of four of its journalists seized by Egyptian police in Cairo at the weekend. They include its Cairo bureau chief Mohamed Fadel Fahmy and former BBC correspondent Peter Greste. The journalists had held illegal meetings with the Muslim Brotherhood, the interior ministry said. Al-Jazeera said it had been "subject to harassment" although not officially banned from working in Egypt. There has been a crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood since the army ousted President Mohammed Morsi in July. Last week it was declared a terrorist group. In the past six months, more than 1,000 pro-Morsi protesters have been killed in clashes with security forces, and thousands of Brotherhood supporters have been arrested, including the majority of its leadership. A court will hear a case to disband the Brotherhood's political wing, the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), on 15 February. 'Arbitrary' The four journ...

Justin Bieber all over Selena Gomez at party

Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez were all over each other at a friend's birthday party. The 'Baby' hitmaker rented out the Lucky Strike bowling alley in Los Angeles on Sunday night for their pal Ryan Butler's intimate celebration, and couldn't keep his hands off the 'Come & Get It' singer at the party. A source told E! News: ''Justin rented out Lucky Strike's Luxe room for the celebration. Additionally, he was seen kissing and flirting with his on-and-off again girlfriend, Selena Gomez.'' The insider added: ''The group, of about 12 people in all, enjoyed some of Lucky Strike's Esteban's Nacho's Grande, Cheeseburgers and wings. Specifically, Justin was seen eating the Mac & Cheese bites.'' Ryan's girlfriend posted a photograph of Selena, 22, gazing at Justin, 20, on Instagram from the party. The Canadian star confirmed during a deposition last week that he has reunited with his on-again, off...