Three-quarters of matchgoing fans oppose Premier League VAR Decisions, according to a Football Supporters’ Association survey published Monday — the most direct rebuke of video review technology since its 2019 debut. The FSA polled supporters attending matches, a group whose in-ground experience is most directly disrupted by lengthy video reviews and delayed goal celebrations.
More than 85% of respondents also opposed a proposed expansion that would let VAR review corner-kick awards — a change the league is actively weighing for next season. That figure alone signals something important: fans are not just unhappy with how VAR works today, they are alarmed at where it might go.
What the FSA Data Actually Shows
The Football Supporters’ Association survey confirms a sustained pattern of matchgoing fan dissatisfaction with video review technology. FSA Premier League network manager Thomas Concannon noted that the 2026 findings directly echo the organisation’s 2021 poll, in which supporters raised serious misgivings about VAR’s introduction. Five years on, those concerns have not softened — they have hardened into firm opposition.
The numbers reveal a trend that the Premier League’s own communications have struggled to counter. The league has repeatedly cited accuracy gains as justification for keeping the system. Yet the matchgoing audience — supporters buying season tickets, travelling to away fixtures, generating the atmosphere that makes the Premier League commercially valuable — stays unconvinced. That gap between the product the league sells and the experience it delivers to its most committed fans is the real friction point.
The FSA represents a broad cross-section of supporter trusts and fan groups across English football. Its surveys carry weight precisely because they target people inside stadiums rather than casual viewers on a sofa. A supporter at Anfield or the Etihad waiting four minutes for a goal to be confirmed lives the VAR delay in a way a television audience simply does not. Premier League VAR Decisions land differently when you are standing in the cold, unable to celebrate.
What Premier League Clubs Are Considering on VAR
The league is set to canvass its 20 member clubs on whether to extend VAR to corner-kick decisions next season. Corners rank among the most contested moments in modern football — clubs invest heavily in set-piece delivery and defensive shape, and a wrongly awarded corner can shift momentum or lead directly to a goal. Adding VAR to that space means more stoppages, more dead time, more frustration for supporters already on edge.
A Premier League spokesperson acknowledged the organisation “recognises the importance of minimising the impact of VAR on the supporter experience” while defending the technology, arguing that “VAR delivers more correct decisions”. The spokesperson also cited internal league research suggesting fans broadly support keeping VAR but want improvements in how it is applied.
That internal research conflicts with the FSA’s independent survey findings. One plausible explanation: the league’s data may sample a wider audience that includes television viewers, while the FSA deliberately targets matchgoing supporters. Both data sets can be accurate at once — they are simply measuring different groups. The methodological gap matters when weighing the two positions.
Key Developments in the VAR Controversy
- The 85% threshold: Opposition to the corner-kick review proposal ran higher than general anti-VAR sentiment — 85% versus 75% — suggesting fans draw a sharper line at expanding the system than at keeping it in its current form.
- Concannon’s framing: The FSA’s Premier League network manager described the 2026 results as confirmation of a sustained, five-year grievance rather than a fresh reaction to any single controversial call.
- The league’s counter-claim: A Premier League spokesperson stated that internal research shows fans are “largely in favour of keeping VAR, but improving the way it is used” — a position that sits in direct tension with the FSA’s independent data.
- Corner review vote upcoming: A formal club consultation on extending VAR to corner decisions is confirmed ahead of 2026-27, meaning a structural change to match management is a live possibility.
- FSA’s governance standing: As the official representative body for fans in England and Wales, the FSA holds formal status in Premier League governance talks — a level of institutional access that individual club supporter groups do not possess.
Where Supporter Influence Over VAR Policy Stands Now
Supporter influence over Premier League VAR Decisions has historically been limited. The league runs on a one-club, one-vote structure among its 20 members, and commercial priorities have consistently outweighed matchgoing fan preferences in governance debates. The FSA’s formal representative status, though, gives this survey more institutional leverage than any stadium protest banner could generate on its own.
The FSA’s findings arrive at a moment when the Premier League faces pressure on several governance fronts — from the independent football regulator process in Westminster to financial rule disputes involving multiple clubs. Fan sentiment on VAR now feeds into a wider political debate about who the sport actually serves.
Based on available data, incremental adjustment is the most likely near-term outcome rather than outright removal. The Premier League has invested heavily in VAR infrastructure, and PGMOL — the body managing professional match officials in England — has staked considerable institutional credibility on the system’s accuracy arguments. A full reversal before 2026-27 would require either a club-vote majority or regulatory pressure, neither of which appears close. What the FSA survey does accomplish is keeping the issue politically alive inside the league’s Bruton Street offices.
The corner review expansion, if approved, would almost certainly deepen the backlash. Corners feed directly or indirectly into roughly a quarter of all Premier League goals when accounting for set-piece sequences, meaning VAR involvement in awarding them would touch some of the most emotionally charged moments in any match. For supporters already worn down by offside line checks and handball deliberations, adding corner disputes to the VAR queue risks pushing the matchday experience further from the spontaneous, communal event that built English football’s global appeal.
What percentage of Premier League fans oppose VAR according to the latest survey?
Three-quarters — 75% — of matchgoing Premier League fans oppose VAR, per a Football Supporters’ Association survey published March 30, 2026. The FSA specifically surveyed supporters attending matches rather than television viewers, making the sample directly relevant to the in-ground experience debate. The 2021 FSA survey recorded similar levels of concern two years after VAR launched.
What is the proposed VAR corner review change in the Premier League?
The Premier League is weighing an extension of VAR to cover the awarding of corner kicks, a change it plans to put to a formal vote among its 20 member clubs ahead of the 2026-27 season. Over 85% of FSA survey respondents opposed this specific proposal — a higher opposition rate than the general anti-VAR figure of 75% recorded in the same poll, suggesting the expansion triggers even stronger resistance than the existing system.
Who is the Football Supporters’ Association and why does their survey matter?
The Football Supporters’ Association serves as the official representative body for fans across England and Wales, giving it formal standing in Premier League governance discussions that individual club supporter groups do not hold. FSA Premier League network manager Thomas Concannon has been the primary spokesperson on the VAR opposition campaign. The organisation’s surveys target matchgoing fans specifically, which distinguishes them from broader public polls.
Does the Premier League plan to remove VAR after the fan survey?
No removal plan has been announced. A league spokesperson defended the technology by stating it “delivers more correct decisions” and cited internal research suggesting fans prefer improving VAR rather than scrapping it. Removal would require a majority vote among the 20 Premier League clubs — a threshold not currently expected to be reached — and would also involve unwinding significant investment in PGMOL’s officiating infrastructure.
When was VAR first introduced in the Premier League?
VAR entered the Premier League at the start of the 2019-20 season, so the 2026 FSA survey reflects nearly seven full seasons of fan experience with the technology. The FSA conducted its first major VAR sentiment survey in 2021, two years after launch, and the 2026 data shows opposition has grown rather than eased over that period — a trajectory that complicates the league’s argument that familiarity breeds acceptance.
