Ending the VAR protocol: How referee joint decisions become final in football

Abstract

This study explores how Video Assistant Referee (VAR) protocols are closed in professional football. Drawing on 107 recordings released by the Turkish Football Federation in 2024–2025, it uses ethnomethodology and conversation analysis to investigate how referees and VAR officials turn video reviews into final decisions. Analysis reveals a sequence: participants treat evidence as sufficient, the referee formulates a decision, the VAR ratifies it or withdraws further pursuit, the referee disengages from the monitor, and the decision is displayed through whistles and gestures. Finality therefore arises not from video evidence alone, but through coordinated talk, embodied conduct, technological disengagement, and public signaling. The study advances research on closings, professional vision, and sports officiating, showing how decisions become final and play resumes.