Both sets of fan at the Vitality Stadium were up in arms during Saturday’s FA Cup fifth-round clash between Bournemouth and Wolves after the newly-introduced semi-automated offside system did not work, leading to an eight-minute VAR check.
Hosts Bournemouth were already a goal up just around the half-hour mark when Milos Kerkez extended their advantage with a back-post header. However, uncertainty over whether he was offside provoked a surpringly long check from the VAR, Timothy Wood.
A source told ESPN that the semi-automated offside system was temporarily out-of-action, causing the VAR to resort to protocol and use the old technology — drawing the lines and judging for himself.
That delay lasted around eight minutes, with both sets of fans angrily chanting “it’s not football anymore” and “this is embarrassing.”
Finally, the goal was ruled out for offside.
The long-awaited semi-automated offside system is making its debut in England this weekend during the FA Cup fifth round. It was used for the first time on Friday to assess the build-up to Aston Villa‘s opening goal in their 2-0 win over Cardiff City.
Information from ESPN’s Bobby Emmanuel contributed to this report.