The VAR has been a controversial game changer for many teams since its official introduction into the FIFA World Cup scene in 2018. The use of the technology has affected the proceedings and outcomes of several crucial World Cup encounters till date. Sometimes the VAR decisions have been acclaimed by fans and critics, while sometimes they have also been heavily criticized. The France National Football Team were at the receiving end of yet another botched VAR decision in their match against Tunisia, when a French equalizer goal was disallowed by the VAR even after the game had resumed after the score.
Today, we again witnessed a questionable decision made via the use of VAR that saw Japan get their second goal controversially awarded in their match against Spain, which resulted in their victory over the 2010 World Champs, pushing them to the top of the Group E rankings. Just 3 minutes after Japan scored their first goal to level the score 1-1, at 51 minutes, Doan had squared the ball fine across the Spanish goal towards Kaoru Mitoma, who sprinted across and brilliantly cut the ball back in right from the edge of the touch line into playing area only for Ao Tanaka to smash the ball into the net.
The Spaniards immediately protested, claiming that the ball had crossed the touch line just before Mitoma cut it back in. This resulted in an extensive VAR check that reviewed the moment in question multiple times from different angles to reach a conclusion. Ultimately, the goal was given after carefully reviewing the touch line camera that suggested that the “Curvature of the ball” was still over the touch line when Mitoma flicked it back into the playing area.
The goal sparked an instant protest among the Spaniards who were dissatisfied with the decision and claimed it to be yet another botched VAR decision. However, the referee called for the match to continue, giving the Japanese a 2-1 lead over the former world champs, much to the dissatisfaction of the Spanish supporters. Earlier in the match, Spain had taken an early lead in the first half when Morata scored the opening goal in the 11th minute. The first half eventually ended with Spain leading the tally 1-0.
The second half then commenced and Doan scored the first goal for Japan in the 48th minute of the match, leveling the score for his team. 3 minutes later, whatever followed, became a matter of huge debate. The goal was controversially awarded to Japan and they eventually maintained the lead throughout the remainder of the match that ended with the referee’s whistle with the score reading 2-1 in Japan’s favor.
The victory pushed Japan to the top of Group E, taking them through to the top 16. Spain, who had already qualified for the round of 16 were pushed down to the second spot. While the match may have been over, the end result sparked a huge controversy on social media, with Spanish supporters condemning the VAR decision to allow the Tanaka goal. Several pictures and footage were posted on the internet from certain other angles that showed the ball clearly touching outside the line when Mitoma made contact. However, FIFA instantly released an official statement on Twitter, confirming the legitimacy of the goal based on the fact that the footage from the touchline camera indicates that the curvature of the ball was still overlapping with the touch line, hence the whole of the ball was not out of play when Mitoma flicked it in just in time.
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