Technology World Cup 2014

Hi, Habr!

Probably everyone is aware of the fact that the World Cup is now in full swing. This is the most prestigious tournament among the national teams. World Championship, we can see only once in 4 years and everyone who is not indifferent to it is looking forward to it. But today I will talk about the technologies that are used in the current championship in Brazil. I will tell about the system of automatic detection of heads and the disappearing liquid .

Probably it is worth starting with the fact that FIFA (the main football organization), or rather its leadership, is very conservative people. In the world of technology boom. Tennis, hockey and other sports use the latest developments in the area of ​​defining breaking rules, scoring systems, replay video systems, which in turn allow judges to make fair decisions. But according to the leadership of the main football organization, football is not a place for technology.
I don’t know how it seems to me that this opinion is probably imposed on the largest players on the market of bookmakers, who in turn can work closely with the judges. But I believe that all this is a myth.
')
The most obvious reasons from the words of leadership:
FIFA President Sepp Blatter:
"The introduction of technical innovations will lead to long stops and in the end will adversely affect the entertainment of matches."
UEFA head Michel Platini:
“Judicial mistakes are an integral part of football and one cannot do without them. In addition, new technologies will surely kill the "humanity" of football, which attracts fans to it. "

Therefore, for the football world it was a shock that some time ago FIFA announced the launch of the scoring system at the 2014 World Cup. According to them, the reason was a huge number of incidents when the referees did not count very obvious balls. For example, at the last World Cup 2010, when the England and Germany national teams played, the ball crossed the gates of Germany by almost a meter. At the 2012 European Championships, all the same England playing with Ukraine missed the cleanest goal, which the referee did not count. Well, about the club championships and tournaments, we generally keep silent.


(The moment when England scores and the ball flies back. World Cup 2010.)

The world was tasked to make a system that meets the following parameters:

• The system must be 100% accurate.
• The system must notify the arbitrator about a goal being scored within a second,
• The system should work in all weather conditions and in any lighting (both day and artificial).

So there were leaders who began to spin in this topic. At the moment, 3 systems are being actively tested.

Hawk-eye

The Hawk-Eye system (which can be translated as “hawk eye”) is already used in tennis and cricket competitions. It consists of six cameras installed at different points, the images from which are combined into one picture that defines the exact location of the ball hit, after which the referee receives signal of a goal.

Goalref

The GoalRef system is less known in the world of sports technology; since 2009, it has been used to determine whether a goal is being played in handball. A magnetic field is created in the goal area, and a microchip is inserted inside the ball. Any change in the magnetic field behind the goal line gives an automatic signal to the referee of the match and means a goal.

GoalControl-4D

The GoalControl-4D system was developed by a German company. It is the first automatic goal determination system applied at the World Cup. The system is based on the use of high-speed cameras, without the use of chips in balls and similar devices. It consists of 14 cameras, all the time aimed at the ball, which transmit information to the computer, and after processing it, it sends a signal that the ball crosses the goal line to the clock of the referee of the match. The system was installed at all the 2014 World Cup stadiums and for the first time influenced the decision of the judge in a controversial episode with the second goal in the match France-Honduras.

Video on how GoalControl-4D works:

Liquid flow technology

This is the very first match of the 2014 World Cup. Notice how the players do not understand what is happening.

This championship has adopted another technology that was previously used in football only as an experiment. Despite the fact that I am actively interested in football, I only found out about it at the current world championships. Match referees now have a can with a special liquid. And with each penalty kick near the gate, when the defense puts the wall, the judge counts a certain number of meters from the ball and draws a line with this spray. The position of the ball itself is also fixed by the spray. Most often, when the referee used to count the distance from the ball to the wall and indicated where the players need to stand, he was distracted, at which time the wall was moving towards the ball. This interferes with the good execution of the penalty and often delays the time when the referee begins to understand and re-think everything. Now this problem is no more, drew where the ball is, drew where the wall is and walk, understand, give cards, do what you want.
Spray disappears after a few minutes. I do not know what the composition. But my friends and I call it shaving foam. It is very similar.

So, I hope the technology will continue to be implemented in football. I, as a person close to IT and football, are very pleased.