Will a global sports league adopt AI-only refereeing by 2028?

The looming era of AI referees in global sports

Fans have long endured the emotional chaos of controversial calls—missed handballs, questionable offsides, phantom fouls. AI promises precision: no fatigue, no bias, and no hesitation. Several leagues already use AI-assisted systems such as VAR, automated line calls, and ball-tracking analytics.

Replacing human referees entirely, however, is a monumental shift. Athletes, organizations, and fans would need absolute trust in the algorithms. Edge cases, unpredictable game dynamics, and real-time decision-making still present engineering puzzles.

My prediction: AI will dominate officiating tools, but full AI-only refereeing in a global league by 2028 is unlikely due to institutional resistance and technical edge-case complexity.