The Premier League have released a new statement months after a VAR incident that impacted Ipswich Town vs Manchester United
The Premier League have sought to clarify the incident during Ruben Amorim’s first match in charge of Manchester United, when against Ipswich Town VAR suddenly went out of operation for a short period.
On November 24, 2024, Man United travelled to Portman Road to take on Ipswich. It was the first match after the latest international break – the one in which Amorim arrived from Sporting CP and ended 1-1 after goals from Marcus Rashford and Omari Hutchinson.
However, a perhaps forgotten blunder prior to half-time saw referee Anthony Taylor calls the captains of each team over to deliver a notice. He told them VAR would be temporarily out of service due to a fire alarm set off at the Stockley Park operations hub.
They confirmed as such at 5:15pm via X, and four minutes later released another statement via the same channel confirming usual circumstances had been resumed.
Thankfully there were no major questions asked of the referee that would have required VAR in this short spell, nor in the rest of the match for that matter.
Now in their latest review of officiating in the English top-flight for matches between 2024/25’s game week 12 and 20 (Nov 23, 2024 – January 6, 2025), the Premier League Match Centre have published more details via a fresh statement.
It reads: “Match Round 12 saw Manchester United make the trip to Portman Road to face Ipswich Town. During the game, the Premier League Match Centre confirmed that the match was operating without VAR due to a fire alarm at the VAR Hub at Stockley Park. This occurred for a short period before VAR was back in operation.
“In this situation the protocol was carried out by the on-field referee, who informed both club captains, while the fourth official informed both managers in the technical areas that VAR would not be in use. Premier League Match Centre also informed club administrative staff of the situation.
“There can be different reasons why VAR may not be in use, and if the situation does occur then Premier League matches are permitted to continue.”
After his maiden draw, Amorim has gone on to take charge of seven Premier League matches.
His record stands at two wins, two draws and three losses.
Manchester United
