KUALA LUMPUR - National professional football referee Muhammad Nazmi Nasaruddin and his two assistants created history when they became the first Malaysians to officiate a 2023/24 Asian Champions League (ACL) match using the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system yesterday.
The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) said Muhammad Nazmi, along with assistants Mohamad Zairul Khalil Tan and Mohd Arif Shamil Abd Rasid, refereed the match between Buriram United and Zhejiang FC in Thailand.
"The AFC (Asian Football Confederation) and Fifa (International Football Federation) have set a condition that all referees appointed for AFC and Fifa top matches must have a VAR licence. Nazmi obtained a VAR licence after undergoing a training programme in Saudi Arabia in August.
"Nazmi and his two assistants will continue to be appointed for several AFC matches that use VAR,” FAM said in a statement today.
FAM said the AFC have also appointed Nazmi and his two assistants to take charge of the 2023 Asian Cup in Qatar in January 2024.
In the meantime, FAM stated that they are now actively conducting VAR training and education for 40 referees, which is expected to finish at the end of December. - BERNAMA