Is there VAR at the Africa Cup of Nations?

The Africa Cup of Nations 2022 takes place in Cameroon this winter – and VAR is in place at the tournament.

Just as in the Premier League, World Cup, Champions League and last year's Euro 2020, video assistant referees are in place for the tournament and they work in exactly the same way.

In 2019, only the quarter-finals onwards saw video assistant referees – but this time around, all 52 matches have VAR in place.

"With CAF advancing with plans not only to improve the image of refereeing but also produce world-class match officials in Africa, the implementation of VAR in all 52 matches is a step in the right direction," said a CAF statement.

24 referees, 31 assistant referees and eight video assistant referees from 36 countries were selected for the tournament in Cameroon. Four female officials were selected for the tournament, too.

This time around, there have been two officials from CONCACAF too, as part of an inter-confederation skills exchange programme. Guatemalan referee Mario Escobar and Mexican VAR official Fernando Guerrero have both appeared at the tournament.

Mark White is the Digital Content Editor at FourFourTwo. During his time on the brand, Mark has written three cover features on Mikel Arteta, Martin Odegaard and the Invincibles, and has written pieces on subjects ranging from Sir Bobby Robson’s time at Barcelona to the career of Robinho. An encyclopedia of football trivia and collector of shirts, he first joined the team back in 2020 as a staff writer.