The aim of this study was to investigate the necessity of goal line technology for top level soccer and compare it to video proof. 1167 games of the 1st and 2nd German Bundesliga were screened for critical goal line decisions as well as other critical goal decisions including penalty calls. 16.8 critical goal line decisions were found per season, of which 76.6 % could directly be resolved by tv-review. On average, 5.0 and 2.8 cases were found respectively in the 1st and 2nd Bundesliga that could justify goal line technology. Furthermore, just 5.0 % of all critical calls concerned goal-line decisions, while 84.3 % involve offside, representing the main reason for critical goal calls. Based on these findings, in terms of a cost-benefit-relation, a video proof could be more suitable than goal line technology. Consequently, we discuss the obstacles and preconditions for the introduction of a video proof in soccer.
© Copyright 2015 Sports Science Research and Technology Support: Second International Congress, icSPORTS 2014, Rome, Italy, October 24-26, 2014, Revised Selected Papers. Published by Springer. All rights reserved.