The 'Explosion of distrust in referees' Football Association finally pulled out the knife, Vice Chairman Lee Yong-soo said, "I'm criticized and interested... Promise for Progressive Development"

*This content was translated by AI.

The Korea Football Association (KFA) has pulled out its sword to resolve distrust in referee management. The government will strengthen transparency and fairness by overhauling the referee allocation and evaluation system and promoting the introduction of artificial intelligence (AI).

According to a press release on the 23rd, the association announced a plan to improve the referee operation with three principles: expertise, fairness and transparency at the "KFA Open Ground: Judgment Policy Announcement" event near the Seoul Football Center this afternoon.

Vice Chairman Lee Yong-soo said, "We take the external reprimand and interest in the referee seriously," adding, "This improvement plan will not satisfy all fans' eyes right away, but we will work hard to make gradual development."

The policy announced this time focused on ▲ improving the method of allocating referees ▲ supplementing the principles of referee evaluation ▲ strengthening referee capabilities ▲ expanding external communication.

The biggest change is the change in the allocation subject. The allocation authority, which has been decided directly by the judging committee, will be transferred to the secretariat (judgment operation team). The association said, "The authority that the existing judging committee finalized will be reorganized in a way that the secretariat finalizes after the first computerized allocation," adding, "It will be applied from the K-League, which opens immediately on the 28th." The association emphasized that it plans to start developing AI-based advanced allocation systems from this year and push for full automation allocation in the future.

In addition, the timing of the allocation of the professional league will be significantly advanced from three to five days before the existing game to two weeks before, providing conditions for referees to be sufficiently prepared psychologically and physically. However, the external disclosure of the assignment list will be maintained two hours before kick-off to maintain security.

It also increases the objectivity of the referee evaluation system. The number of non-judges in the evaluation council will be increased from one to three, and transparency will be strengthened by opening the eligibility for observation, which has been only allowed to league employees, to club officials.

It will also supplement the education system for capacity building. After each round, the association decided to focus on regularizing online feedback training and enhancing the uniformity of judgments. In particular, it plans to expand mobile VAR (M-VAR) education, which was first introduced in winter training in January, and establish a fast track for international referees by introducing a performance-based promotion system. For competitiveness in the international arena, English education for the entire course of the Academy of Judgment Education S course will also be mandatory.

It will also actively respond to major issues. It is considering ways to strengthen the administrative power of the secretariat by elevating the existing referee operation team to the referee's office. In addition, the association will expand its external communication channels, such as launching a "Monday Briefing" every week to explain major decision issues.

Prior to this, the association held the first and second internal discussions to derive key tasks for the development of referees. Since then, the "KFA Open Ground: Judgment Development Public Hearing" was held on the 4th to listen to various on-site opinions, and based on this, the policy was confirmed.

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*This content was translated by AI.