PETALING JAYA, Sept 1 — The introduction and implementation of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system in the Malaysian Football League (MFL) next season will cost a whopping RM9.7 million said the MFL.

MFL chief executive officer Datuk Stuart Ramalingam said for the subsequent year, the cost for the technology will be in the region of RM3.2 million.

"The initial cost is high due to the installation of the equipment and system. It’s an infrastructure investment, so it’s a fixed cost that we need to invest in for the first year but the second year onwards it’s about RM3.2 million. This is not including the additional broadcast cameras if we need to add on.

"The first year we will start with six cameras and from the savings, we may be able to add more cameras at a higher cost,” he told reporters at Wisma Persatuan Bolasepak Malaysia (FAM), Kelana Jaya, here today.

Stuart said the MFL had decided to introduce the VAR for matches under its jurisdication.

"MFL has 240 matches per season, that is our target. So if we do implement it, we try to implement for all 240 matches,” he said adding that the entire cost of implementing the VAR would be borne by the MFL.

Earlier, Stuart and FAM secretary-general Datuk Noor Azman Rahman visited the second phase of the VAR training session attended by 40 local referees and 14 "replay operators” (RO), here.

The VAR technology was first used in Malaysia during the 2022 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) final between Kuala Lumpur City FC and Al-Seeb from Oman at the National Stadium Nasional in Bukit Jalil last October and was fully handled by the AFC.

The FAM had initially hoped to use the VAR during the 2023 Malaysia Cup final at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil on December 9. — Bernama