Scottish FA appoint former EPL referee Jon Moss as first 'VAR manager'

The Scottish FA has appointed former English Premier League referee Jon Moss as its first VAR manager.

Head of refereeing Willie Collum has created the new role to improve the efficiency of the decision review system and has appointed a former referee with extensive experience of using the technology.

The governing body says Moss will “support Collum in maintaining the highest standards of VAR training, implementation, appointment and performance review”.

Moss operated in English football’s top-flight for more than a decade, including over 250 Premier League games, as well as the 2015 FA Cup Final and the 2019 League Cup Final.

He retired from refereeing in 2022 and joined Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), where he worked as elite referee manager until earlier this year. He will officially begin his role next week.

Video assistant referees were introduced into Scottish football in October 2023, with the system dividing opinion as many complained of lengthy delays during matches, and many decisions remaining controversial.

The Scottish FA has said that the implementation of the technology has helped to increase the number of correct decisions but also created an independent review panel last season, which had highlighted the need for improvement in some areas.

The new role is intended to improve the experience of VAR for officials as well as for clubs and supporters, and Moss said that initial discussions had already provided an outline for where his efforts would go.

“I’m really excited to work with Willie and the team to evolve the implementation of VAR in Scottish football.,” he said.

“In our conversations we agreed on the importance of the fundamentals of VAR: clarity, communication and transparency.

“We went through a similar process around the introduction of VAR in England – I was the referee in the first ever game that VAR intervened in the country – so I’ve seen first-hand what has worked and what needed to change, both as a referee and in my role within PGMOL.

“I look forward to working with the referees and the team at the Scottish FA to continue to improve how VAR is operated within Scottish football.”

The appointment is one of the first key decisions taken by Collum since he succeeded Crawford Allan as head of referees and the former match official believes Moss will help improve the game.

“I am delighted to welcome Jon, who has significant and varied experience in using technology as a referee, working as a VAR operator and also serving behind the scenes as a manager of elite officials,” he said.

“I believe his experience will benefit not only our current VARs and AVARs, but also the next generation who will need to become proficient in the use of the technology as we continue to improve its usage.

“I am confident that Jon’s appointment will help us on our journey towards making VAR more efficient and less intrusive in Scottish football.”