How an American-style challenge system could be the antidote for soccer’s VAR controversy

VAR is stuck in a state of recurring crisis because its purpose is incompatible with its process. It is supposed to correct “clear and obvious errors,” and has done that ever since its implementation across numerous soccer leagues and competitions over the last decade; but it has also left soccer fans everywhere wondering and debating what constitutes a “clear and obvious error,” and often waiting for a faceless human to decide. It has turned one subjective decision — was that a foul? — into another — was that clearly and obviously not a foul? And it was destined to fail,…