Instant Replay

Instant replay gives the ability to viewers to rewatch an incident that has just occurred. In the winter of 1963, CBS Sports’ Tony Verna found a way to play back video during the live broadcast. The first time it was used was during an Army -Navy football game. The clip was of the Army quarterback running in for a touchdown. Viewers were confused as to that fact they believed there was another touchdown score, and they complained to CBS. Without the ability to rewatch a play, the viewers only saw one view with no slow motion, no zoom in, and no highlights.

TonyVerna was only 29 years old when he figured out instant replay. He has been a producer of multiple Super Bowls and many other athletic events, along with Pope John Paul II’s “Prayer for World Peace.” He remembers being able to eat a sandwich between plays of the big game and the announcer not being able to explain plays in full detail due to the few camera views that would not allow full view of the field. He was a very charitable man who helped raise $37 million to support famine relief in Africa; Sport Aid. He also helped raise famine awareness for Ethiopia with his Live Aid. Along with his amazing career, he has three grown children, Tracy, Jenny, and Eric. He has also been married, divorced, and married again. Mr. Verna will forever be remembered in the hearts of sports fans everywhere. 

In 1986, instant replay was first used in the NFL by the Cleveland Browns vs. the Chicago Bears. At this time however, coaches were unable to “challenge” plays like they are able to do today. Instant replay was voted out by the owners in 1992, but in 1999 it returned and coaches were able to challenge two plays per a game. In 2004, coaches were able to throw a third flag, as long as the previous two challenges were successful. Referees are given 60 seconds to review the play and are able to overturn the previous call if found to be incorrect. 

For baseball, getting instant replay was a hassle. Owners and officials were unsure about the update but in 2008 they accepted the new technology. Review would be for boundary calls, fly balls that have gone over the fence, and whether if home runs were fair or foul, also with fan interruptions with home run hits. Unlike football, coaches and players are not the people who determine whether if there will be an instant replay, the umpire makes the call. The NHL first got instant replay in 1991 and the NBA in 2002. 

Entertainment Weekly later listed instant replay's debut among its 100 greatest television moments. In 2004, Sports Illustrated cited "deja view" as one of sport's "20 great tipping points" of the previous 50 years and wrote of instant replay's impact, "The revolutionary premise was that sports could be improved not by changing the games but by changing the way they were packaged."-An Idea Worth More Than a Second Look Jerry Crowe