Sources: Uefa send unprecedented message to West Ham
West Ham have been told that VAR will be used in all of the Europa Conference League knockout rounds for the first time, Football Insider has learned.
The video assistant referee system was not introduced until the semi-finals of the Conference League in 2021-22.
That is in contrast to the top two tiers of Uefa’s competition system, the Europa League and the Champions League, where VAR has been in full operation for several seasons.
The Hammers topped their Conference League group with a 100 per cent record, earning passage to the round of 16.
They will not learn their opponents for that tie until after a round of play-off fixtures between group runners-up, scheduled for the 16 and 23 February.
That group of fixtures will see VAR implemented for the first time in the Conference League this season, with all subsequent matches in the competition also set to be officiated using the system.
The news represents a change in policy from Uefa, who previously suggested that they would only use VAR in the final of this year’s Conference League.
West Ham reached the semi-final of the Europa League last term, where they were beaten 3-1 on aggregate by eventual champions Eintracht Frankfurt.
They are among the highest-ranked teams under the Uefa coefficient system in this season’s edition of the Conference League, which they qualified for by virtue of finishing 7th in last season’s Premier League.
Their European campaign this term, however, is arguably secondary to their domestic exploits, with David Moyes’ side currently languishing in 17th place in the top flight.
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