ABSTRACT
Tennis and rugby are two very different sports with little in common. The elements required to stage these two sports are quite disparate: the size of the pitch/court, the length of the game, the turns in play, the number of players, the mode of scoring, and the contact between players. In addition, the tasks of the referees in both cases are also very distinct, ranging from the almost mechanical and distant nature in the former, to a situation where the referee is more closely integrated into the dynamics of the game in the latter. Nevertheless, both sports share a common feature in that they have successfully implemented assisted refereeing with the consensus of the players and other stakeholders, albeit for different reasons. The road followed to incorporate the corresponding assisted refereeing systems has had its highs and lows. Both systems are based on video recording, although in tennis it is used to gather data, while rugby relies on direct observation. This chapter reviews some of the characteristics of these two sports that offer advantages and drawbacks for assisted refereeing. Here, the key effective video technologies are described, as well as the difficulties in their implementation. The principal goal is to extract information that may be valuable for the incorporation of VAR in football, the uptake of which will depend on an adequate implementation and its approval by stakeholders.
