Tag: Hawk-Eye

Goal Line Adopted by FIFA

The game may never be the same. This has been said in many sports over the years, but on Friday FIFA approved the use of goal-line technology at the Club World Cup, Confederations Cup 2013 and World Cup 2014. What does this mean for the average pick up game or youth soccer match? Nothing.

But for the pros it is a game changer. It actually comes about from the adoption of two different technologies that have been approved, and both will be used in different capacities going forward. The “Hawk-Eye” essentially uses high-speed cameras and triangulation to determine if the ball crossed the goal line. It has already been successfully used widely in international tennis and cricket tournaments. The other is the “GoalRef” technology that relies on a microchip that is placed inside the ball and uses magnetic waves to determine if the ball has crossed the goal-line. Continue reading Goal Line Adopted by FIFA

Hawk-Eye on the Prize and the Goal

One thing was proven at this year’s World Cup tournament: you need to have eyes like a hawk to keep track of the ball. That’s why Dr. Paul Hawkin, inventor of Hawk-Eye, is pushing for adopting of his tracking system by the International Football Association Board. If adopted this could see the use of goal-line watching technology put in place this year.

Hawkins isn’t new to the world of sports either, and he previously developed the ball-tracking device used in cricket, snooker and tennis, and is pushing for similar technology to be used in football/soccer. The system includes six cameras facing the goal from different angles to track the ball, where a signal is transmitted via a bank of computers to a referee with half a second of the ball crossing the line. Given some of the disputed calls during the World Cup, this could make a huge difference.

However, not all are in embracing the idea. It has been noted that many English Premier League matches are carried by Sky TV, which has eight cameras on the field, so a simple replay should often be enough to determine a call. But the real question is whether you can ever really have enough eyes – Hawk – or otherwise watching the action?

Hawk-Eye Sensors Official Site