Strange moment in the World Cup as the referee changes a free-kick decision during France vs Spain, leaving ITV commentators totally confused.
ITV commentators were really surprised when the referee changed his mind about a free-kick during the World Cup semi-final between France and Spain.
In the first half, Mikel Oyarzabal scored the only goal with a well-taken penalty after Lucas Digne clumsily challenged Lamine Yamal inside the box. That call was clear and didn’t cause much fuss.
But later, something happened that confused a lot of people at the AT&T Stadium. Fabian Ruiz looked furious after being penalised for a foul outside the box on Ousmane Dembele. However, the replay showed Ruiz didn’t actually touch Dembele, who just lost his balance and fell into him.
Commentator Lee Dixon, a former Arsenal and England defender, said, “That was never a free-kick.” Then, in a surprising move, referee Ivan Barton changed his decision and canceled the free-kick.
Lead commentator Sam Matterface said, “I think the VAR told the referee about it, but I’m not sure that’s something we were expecting.” Dixon responded, “That’s not normal!” Matterface replied, “Ruiz wasn’t booked either. Usually, a referee can only change a decision for things like mistaken identity. Maybe we’ll check with Christina Unkel. Still, it was the right call in the end.”
France’s coach, Didier Deschamps, looked shocked when the free-kick was taken back, and for a while, no one knew why the decision was reversed. Some fans on social media guessed that a linesman or fourth official told the referee Dembele just fell into Ruiz.
BBC’s referee expert Dale Johnson later explained there was no VAR involved; instead, the assistant referee advised the referee to cancel the free-kick. He wrote on X (formerly Twitter): “The commentary team didn’t have the full picture and don’t have access to VAR audio like in the Premier League. I’m told the referee changed the call after advice from his assistant. It’s rare to see a referee take advice after giving a decision. The referee pointed to assistant Antonio Pupiro before going back on the call with a dropped ball.”
VAR has been stepping in more often at this World Cup for things like corner kicks, goal kicks, mistaken identity, and second yellow cards.
Referee Ivan Barton made headlines earlier when he gave a red card to Miguel Almiron for covering his mouth during a tense moment in Paraguay’s game against Turkey. This was the first time FIFA’s new rule was used, and later Arsenal player Piero Hincapie was also sent off for the same reason in Ecuador’s match against Mexico.