In America, VAR has ended up in the cellar

In the Italian media, both before and after the final, ample coverage was given to the ‘scandal’ surrounding the extra half-time break scheduled between the two halves of the match. ‘It is unthinkable to stop for twenty-seven minutes,’ thundered the guardians of the sacred game from their stands, all serious and stern: ‘The half-time break is fifteen minutes and fifteen seconds, not a second more! That’s how it’s laid down; there are rules and established practice. In short, it simply isn’t done. Then again, when one thinks of our Serie A, one is reminded of the commentators who, on early February evenings, during some unmissable Friday kick-off or Monday late game – with half-empty stands – wonder where the teams have got to, given that they’re running late. And there, in the fabulous Italian stadiums of the 1910s, at 9.35 pm on a clear February evening, there isn’t even Madonna (for those interested) to distract the viewers. When it comes to wasting time, we’re the ones least entitled to have a say. At the Trumpian-Mexican-Canadian World Cup, there were hydration breaks (even when it had just poured with rain and the air at the Azteca was more like that of Greenland) with accompanying adverts, and those massive seven- or eight-minute periods of added time – true. But the game went ahead. Without any shows or theatrics.

No sudden cramps for the goalkeeper of the team that has just scored. No substitutions lasting several minutes, no physios coming onto the pitch to rest their thumb and index finger on the unfortunate player’s triceps. And above all, no VAR bringing matches to a standstill in a state of suspense that has become intolerable for everyone. In the early days, years ago, there was a sense of drama: the commentators would shout like Adani every time the referee ran to the screen. The crowd would cheer, with chants of ‘ole’ and roars of approval. Now, it’s just boos. In Italy, the amount of actual playing time is among the lowest in Europe, and we realise this as soon as we cross the border and head to the Champions League, Europa League or Conference League. Here, any excuse is a good one to waste time. At the extra-long World Cup, we saw something new, despite the less-than-stellar standard of refereeing (starting with the final, which was officiated by the Slovenian Slavko Vincic, who will one day explain the flash of inspiration that led him to disallow Spain’s first goal).

Collina, a man who used to play a lot and is now the head of FIFA’s refereeing department, had said it: "we will penalise time-wasting". No sooner said than done. The only downside is that, since you can no longer call the doctor onto the pitch for an ingrown hair, players are now staging impromptu brawls to slow the game down a bit. Just at random. But it will be sorted out. It’s a good lesson for our league too, which every year between July and August looks at how to revitalise itself and make itself attractive again to investors and top players, whilst trying not to end up like some sort of Polish or Scottish league. We’ll see some changes as early as a month from now, when Serie A kicks off again. From this season onwards, Daniele Orsato will be training the referees. The tough, no-nonsense referee from Schio who wasn’t at all keen on VAR. Of course, he would publicly say that the system is necessary, good, fair and useful. But then on the pitch, in the heat of the moment, Orsato would reveal an impatience with a system that only in rare cases offers objective and indisputable judgements (and indeed, despite the overuse of the ‘slow-motion replay’, there is still debate). At least when it comes to actual playing time, however, something will be done. Perhaps.