Philippe Clement lists 81 countries in Norwich VAR rant after West Brom shocker | OneFootball

The Canaries boss is still far from impressed with last weekend's decision to allow Aune Heggebo's goal

Norwich City head coach Philippe Clement has listed 81 countries in which referees can rely upon the services of Video Assistant Referee (VAR) to help aid their decision-making processes after the Canaries' controversial opening day loss to West Bromwich Albion last weekend.

Although the Belgian's side dominated the possession and overall shot count against the Baggies, they were left empty-handed in terms of points as Aune Heggebo and Jimmy-Jay Morgan netted a quickfire double for the visitors prior to Mathias Kvistgaarden's consolation goal.

However, the first of those goals, scored by Heggebo, appeared to have struck his hand despite an initial cross from Morgan bypassing an attempted clearance from Vladan Kovacevic.

Unsurprisingly, footage of the goal was rife on social media last weekend as a major talking point upon the Championship's return, and whilst Clement is preparing his side for an intriguing away clash with Millwall, the 52-year-old is still clearly extremely disappointed by the lack of refereeing intervention which allowed the goal to stand.

Philippe Clement issues 81-country long VAR rant after Norwich City vs West Brom controversy

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It was confirmed by West Brom on Thursday night that, even though his goal against Norwich will ultimately stand, Heggebo has received a two-match suspension which covers the clash with Burnley at The Hawthorns on Sunday lunchtime, as well as Tuesday's EFL Cup tie against Newcastle United.

Heggebo was the subject of an unsuccessful charge against misconduct, with the FA deeming the 25-year-old to have breached rule E3.1, and it being declared he was able to “successfully deceive a Match Official by handling the ball in a direct successful attempt to score a goal”.

In his press conference ahead of a trip to The Den, Clement has since revealed: "I asked my analyst to look up in which leagues of the world there is VAR, and that's why I have this (long list).

"Leagues in the world with VAR. Albania, Algeria, Argentina (etc.)," he added.

After listing all 81 countries which featured on his list, the Norwich boss continued: "All these leagues have VAR.

"There are countries that never played in the World Cup (that have VAR).

"It's madness to me that there is no VAR in the Championship," the Norwich boss stated. "This isn't going to change (the situation).

"It's not that in three years' time, we're all going to decide whether every league has VAR."

How social media has reacted to Philippe Clement's VAR rant

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As was the case when footage of Heggebo's Carrow Road strike emerged, Clement's reaction has sparked a strong reaction from supporters of Norwich and West Brom.

"I love big Phil but we need to move on. You have these kinds of setbacks in games and you have to overcome them. VAR would ruin the Championship," said one Canaries fan.

"Love him but get over it," was another intriguing response from a Norwich supporter.

"Easy to solve. 4th official has a screen. He gets 1 replay of every goal. If he suspects an issue he calls ref over, watch it and sees the offence instantly. Can only be used for goals only and only if 4th official suspects an issue after 1 replay," was another supporter's opinion as to how goals such as Heggebo's could be prevented in the future.

Another Norwich fan clearly in agreement with Clement added: "I love this guy. If big Phil wants VAR give it him. It just needs to be used better than it is in the prem , for clear errors only."

However, one Albion supporter was also quick to reply: "I strongly suggest Clement focuses on how his team got cut open and the Albion centre forward had a tap-in from 4 yards with no defender near him."

Will we ever see VAR in the EFL Championship on a regular basis?

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VAR, of course, has split opinion since it was first used in English football in January 2018 for an FA Cup tie between Brighton and Hove Albion and Crystal Palace, before being used in the Premier League from the start of the 2019/20 season onwards.

It has been used, though, in all EFL play-off finals since 2021/22, with notable moments including the decisions to not award Huddersfield Town two penalties against Nottingham Forest in May 2022, whilst Harrison Burrows saw a goal disallowed for Sheffield United in the 2025 final against Sunderland, which the Blades went on to lose 2-1

Sky Sports pundit, Don Goodman, exclusively revealed to FLW: “It’s a tough conundrum (whether the EFL should introduce VAR).

"It costs a fortune and at the minute, I would be confident that the (EFL) clubs would rather have the money at their disposal than what it would cost to implement VAR in the Championship and then in League One and Two further down the line."