Madrid: FIFA boss Gianni Infantino rates the trial of new video referee technology at the Club World Cup a "positive" step towards its intended use at the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
"We've learned a lot as there's nothing better than a competition to conduct testing," the president of football's ruling body told Spanish sports daily Marca yesterday.
Infantino's backing for the video assistant referee (VAR) system came despite criticism from Colombia's Atletico Nacional after the first-ever penalty awarded under the technology helped knock them out of this month's event in Japan.
Real Madrid were also lukewarm after confusion around a Cristiano Ronaldo goal in another game.
Speaking before the final in Yokohama he said he hoped "at the next World Cup the test results will be positive enough to be able to implement it".
He defended the technology again telling Marca it helped "avoid an event like the World Cup being decided by a serious error by the referee".
Infantino blamed the confusion on the video assistant pressing the intercom while consulting colleagues, confusing the match referee.
