WATCH: Referee Calls Players Back From Halftime Over VAR PK Ruling
VAR, or Video Assistant Referees, isn't exactly a widely accepted concept in football - or at least, it isn't at the moment as it continues to be worked on.
The system attempts to reach correct judgments in games, and looks at possible errors that could be deemed 'clear and obvious' in the areas of awarding goals, potential penalties, red card offenses and cases of mistaken identity.
It was rolled out for the first time in English football last year for the FA Cup match between Brighton and Crystal Palace, and has since been used in the competition at grounds that can accommodate its technology.
While good in theory, the system has proven to be a huge disruption to the game, with the time it takes to reach decisions simply too long sometimes.
This was particularly evident during a Bundesliga match involving Mainz and Freiburg at the weekend, when referee Guido Winkmann awarded a penalty decision after he had already blown for halftime.
Via BBC Sport, both sets of players had already made their way into their respective dressing rooms, but after being told to consult, VAR the referee adjudged Daniel Brosinski's cross to have hit the hand of Freiburg center back Marc-Oliver Kempf in the penalty area.
After a delay of over six minutes, the players were then forced back out on to the pitch to play out the penalty, which was scored by Mainz midfielder Pablo de Blasis, before traipsing back in again. The official goal time was clocked at 45+7, and Mainz went on to win the game 2-0.
