Mediatized Engagements with Technologies: “Reviewing” the Video Assistant Referee at the 2018 World Cup

This article presents the implementation of Video Assistant Referee (VAR) as an example increasingly layered mediatization sports. We argue that, while integrated into established broadcasting protocols, VAR becomes object explicit reflection and popular debate—and so, when football its TV coverage are discussed on “technologies engagement” like Twitter. Combining concept with insights from Science Technology Studies, this discusses how why sports systematically contribute to what we call “mediatized engagements technologies.” The combination football’s “media manifold” comprising epistemic technologies, television, social media knowledgeable emotionally invested audience inevitably limits “black-boxing” a refereeing technology. Our case study analyses fans, journalists, others evaluate in action Twitter during men’s 2018 FIFA World Cup. Based multilingual dataset, show, among other examples, event displays technology historical innovation analyze even allegedly “clear obvious” cases application create controversies. In conclusion, sports, partisanship, ambivalent relationship technologies stimulate engagement far beyond fair issue.