Only captains are allowed to talk to referees over VAR decisions at Euro 2024

Only team captains will be allowed to talk to the referee in a bid to explain key officiating decisions during this year's UEFA European Championship in Germany, the European football governing body announced on Tuesday.

"We want strong-personality referees taking and assuming decisions—which can sometimes be unpopular—on the pitch but at the same time, we want them to be more open and explain what led to certain decisions," UEFA's managing director of referees, Roberto Rosetti said.

"They receive a lot of information from the video assistant referee (VAR), and we are ready to speak and share more details with the players and coaches to help them understand how a decision was taken," he added.

If a team's captain is a goalkeeper, an outfield player will be nominated for the role. Meanwhile, captains must make sure that their teammates won't encroach on the referee. If a player approaches the referee and shows any sign of disrespect or dissent, he will be shown a yellow card.

Euro 2024 will begin on June 14 and end on July 14. It will include 24 teams that are divided into six groups. UEFA's refereeing specialists will meet all of their teams to explain the new measure in better detail.

The first professional "non-friendly" game that introduced VAR was the KNVB Cup tie between Ajax and Willem II in September 2016. A series of rules have been added since to improve the accuracy and transparency of the system. For example, FIFA used in-stadium announcements to explain VAR decisions at the Women's World Cup in 2023 in Australia and New Zealand.

"Officials will be encouraged to be open in their discussions with the captains to foster a healthy atmosphere between all parties," Rosetti said. "This will allow them to build significant amounts of trust with players and show the kind of leadership required from modern officials in action."