CCTV, witnesses can't prove VAR was switched off on purpose in Porto-Braga | OneFootball

The FC Porto-Sp. Braga match (2-1), corresponding to the 10th round of the Liga Betclic, experienced a disruption in the VAR system towards the end of halftime, which delayed the start of the second half by 45 seconds. The Disciplinary Council of the FPF launched an inquiry into the incident, which was later closed.

With the publication of the inquiry ruling, it is clear that the Committee of Instructors analyzed surveillance footage and heard five witnesses, without being able to obtain sufficient evidence of any intentional deactivation of the VAR. “In fact: it was not possible to identify, through CCTV footage, any unequivocal positive act of disconnection; and the most plausible explanation, in light of what was established, points to an accidental disconnection, the specific perpetrator of which could not be determined and which, in itself, does not allow for the substantiation of a violation of regulatory duties by any particular agent or entity. (…) Taking into account the sufficiency of the steps taken (which make further measures unnecessary), it is believed that there is not enough data, elements, or circumstances which, considered together and even through logical-rational reasoning, would seriously and soundly allow for any reasonable possibility of determining a violation of regulatory norms or the commission of any disciplinary infraction within the scope of the facts under investigation in this inquiry,” reads the conclusion of the process.

Upon reviewing the footage, the Committee of Instructors found no action linking the disconnection of the VAR system’s plug to the power outlet located on a small wall next to the central stand of the Estádio do Dragão, although the presence of a person who was later identified during the proceedings was noted.

First to be heard was Rui Rodrigues, VAR support technician for FC Porto, whose responsibility is “to ensure the electrical power supply for the system, as well as to provide support if requested by Altice and/or Media Pro technicians.” The interviewee stated that he only became aware of the power failure the day after the match: “I learned, after the day of the game, through the Field Director of FC Porto SAD, that the system, in the part corresponding to the review area, was not working for a short period, near the start of the second half, but the system was quickly restored. I was told there was no suspicion of any malicious act, and the most likely cause of the interruption was that someone tripped over a wire, accidentally unplugging it.”

José António Monteiro, a Media Pro technician, stated that he was “absolutely certain that the plug was connected to the outlet at the start of halftime, having a perfect memory of checking the connection before leaving the site” and added that “as far as he could tell, the UPS [uninterruptible power supply] supported the operation of the equipment in the review area for about 10 minutes.”

For his part, Carlos Carvalho, security director of FC Porto, said he did not recognize the person seen in one of the surveillance images, whose identification was initially unknown, but suggested it might be the technician responsible for the CO2 jets activated at the teams’ entrance onto the field. The testimony of Marco Paiva, field director of FC Porto, followed, who “stated that all CCTV footage was examined without detecting any fact that could have caused such interruption” and “explained that the wire reaches the outlet through a technical duct that runs between the review area and the aforementioned wall,” adding that “since the wire runs through this duct, it is impossible for someone to have tripped over it, thus unplugging it.” Marco Paiva then identified the person in question as Tiago Bernardo, an employee of CJR – Pirotecnia e Explosivos, S.A., who provided services to FC Porto related to the CO2 jets.

Tiago Bernardo confirmed that, as part of his duties, he needs to “use several electric cables/wires that are connected to outlets about 25 meters from the location shown in the aforementioned image,” because “only there are there three-phase, 32-amp outlets, which are suitable for the equipment in question, and which are not to be confused with the outlets closer to the review area.” “He added that he took care not to mix the aforementioned cables/electric wires with those connected to any other equipment, and that he covered them with artificial grass mats to eliminate the risk of someone tripping over them. When asked, he stated that there is a technical duct running between the review area and the wall separating the stand, which he presumes is intended for the cable that supplies electricity to the equipment in the review area, for which there is a dedicated outlet next to the gate seen in the image, on the aforementioned wall. When asked, he stated that, in theory, it is not impossible that his handling of any equipment could have caused the disconnection of this plug/cable from its outlet, but, considering the care he took and what he observed on site, this is highly unlikely,” the document reads.

Given the facts and testimonies, the investigator recommended “the closure of the case, concluding that, despite the relevance of the facts under investigation – temporary interruption of the VAR system’s operation, with a 45-second delay in the resumption of the second half of the match in question –, no indicative elements were collected that would allow attributing such occurrence to any disciplinarily relevant conduct.”

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.