Top-flight football match abandoned after fishcake protest against VAR

A top-flight football match in Norway was abandoned when fans staged a protest against the use of video assistant referees (VAR) by throwing fishcakes, tennis balls and smoke bombs on the pitch.

Rosenborg BK’s home game against Lillestrom was stopped after around 30 minutes following a number of interruptions.

VAR has stirred controversy in the Eliteserien – Norway’s equivalent to the Premier League – with supporters claiming the time spent by referees to make a decision when using the system is too long and ruining matches.

The protests at the Lerkendal stadium in Trondheim started from kick-off with a two-minute bombardment of fishcakes, forcing the referee and the players to return to the dressing room.

When the game restarted, the protests intensified with tennis balls and smoke bombs being thrown at the pitch.

Video posted on social media showed objects scattered across the playing surface. It is not clear why in particular fishcakes, which are a traditional food in Norway, were among the objects thrown.

The score was 0-0 when the game was halted – and it comes after previous protests by fans.

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At the end of last month, another game involving Lillestrom saw fans throw hundreds of tennis balls on to the field in the first minute of their home match against KFUM Oslo.

After the protest in June, Joacim Moeller, a member of the Lillestrom supporters’ club, told the Norwegian newspaper VG: “It took three minutes to clean up, which is half the time of a typical VAR situation.

“It was our way of showing our dissatisfaction.

“Everyone in Norway knows that we are against VAR. People are getting tired of it.

“There is no improvement. It is ultimately ruining our sport.”

The system has faced considerable criticism from several leagues, mostly for the time it takes for decisions to be made by officials using the technology.

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Last month, Premier League clubs voted overwhelmingly to keep VAR next season, despite officials previously acknowledging decisions were taking too long.

Decisions at Euro 2024 in Germany were widely praised for being far quicker, but their officiating systems included the semi-automatic offside technology (SAOT).

SAOT is set to be introduced to the Premier League after one of the international breaks in the autumn, according to officials.

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