10 Worst VAR Decisions in Football History (Ranked)

Has there been a more controversial change to the modern game of football than the introduction of VAR? The Video Assistant Referee was designed as a tool to massively aid referees within the game, allowing them a chance to review decisions that, otherwise, would simply go down in the history books as “controversial” before being swiftly forgotten.

On paper, VAR is a brilliant idea, a way for referees to improve their standards and reduce the mistakes made in a match. If anything, it has somehow made mistakes more common. It appears, now, that some referees are reliant on the technology which makes them less commanding on the pitch, despite there having been countless VAR errors over the years, with it still being in its infancy.

So, with that being considered, what are some of the worst VAR decisions that have been made in the history of world football? From howlers in the Premier League to the World Cup, here are the 10 that left everyone scratching their heads.

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Ranking Factors

Lists are subjective. It is more than feasible for two lists on the same topic to have different entries, depending on the opinions of the writer. In saying that, this list has been ranked based on the following criteria.

• How bad was the decision? A simple, but obvious, ranking factor. Just how awful was the decision.
• Ramifications – Did the decision impact only the game it occurred in, or were there longer-lasting damages?
• Fan reception – Which decisions are still remembered by fans for just how bad they were?

10

Juventus 2-2 Salernitana

Serie A

A Serie A match that was locked at 2-2 entering the final minutes, there was pandemonium in Turin when Arkadiusz Milik thought he had scored the winning goal for Juventus against Salernitana. The striker, who was already on a yellow card, received a second booking for removing his shirt during the manic celebrations.

It was then announced, however, that due to Leonardo Bonucci being in an offside position, the goal would not stand. Despite this, however, Milik’s red card stood, despite his goal having been ruled out. Fighting broke out, resulting in two players and Juve manager Massimiliano Allegri all being dismissed.

9

Everton 0-1 Manchester City

Premier League

2023 saw Manchester City lift their third of what would be four-straight Premier League titles, but their triumph that year was not entirely without controversy. Pep Guardiola’s team travelled to Goodison Park in February to face Everton, then managed by current Coventry City boss Frank Lampard.

Phil Foden gave the visitors the lead, but Everton should have been awarded a penalty soon after. Rodri, seemingly blatantly, handled the ball in his own box, but nothing came of the action. Lampard was outspoken about the incident, noting that his then-three-year-old would have known that should have been a penalty and labelled Chris Kavanagh, the VAR official, as a “professional who cannot do his job right.”

8

Inter Milan 1-0 Barcelona

Champions League

A result that left Barcelona on the brink of exiting the Champions League, which they would ultimately do by the conclusion of the group stages. Barca fell to a 1-0 defeat at the San Siro in 2022 against Inter Milan, but only because of a decision that then-manager Xavi branded as “a real injustice.”

Barca were chasing the game throughout the second half, having conceded just before the half-time whistle. It appeared that Pedri had equalised for the Catalan giants. The goal was ruled out for an Ansu Fati handball, despite replays showing that Fati had his hands raised as he pressured Andre Onana in the Inter goal and that, if anything, the ball was pushed into his fingers.

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7

Tunisia 1-0 France

World Cup

A decision that, had there been more significant ramifications, may well be spoken about far more frequently. In the final group stage game for France of the 2022 World Cup, they faced Tunisia, who took the lead in the match through captain Wahbi Khazri in the second half and looked set to secure a famous win, even if they were not going to progress from the group.

In the game’s dying embers, Antoine Griezmann volleyed a strike into the net to secure a point for his country, though the goal was ruled out by VAR. Griezmann was judged to be in an offside position, which was true at the time of Aurelien Tchouameni’s pass. This ball, though, was touched by a Tunisia defender trying and failing to clear the danger.

As such, Griezmann’s goal should have stood, but it was ruled out all the same. Abdullah Al-Marri, the video assistant for that match, was not on VAR for another match in the tournament afterwards.

6

Sheffield United 0-0 Aston Villa

Premier League

One of the first Premier League matches to be played after the league resumed from hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Aston Villa were desperate for a result at Bramall Lane against Sheffield United, with the Villans having been in a relegation scrap during the 2019/20 season. Just before half-time, Villa goalkeeper Orjan Nyland caught the ball from a free-kick and as he fell backwards, carried the ball over the line.

Despite goal-line technology having been in the league for years, it did not recognise that the ball had crossed the line and the game finished 0-0, meaning Villa secured a point. This error, which was also not spotted by VAR when it very easily could have been, had massive ramifications, seeing Bournemouth and Watford relegated at Villa’s expense.

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5

Manchester United 1-0 Wolves

Premier League

The 2022/23 season began as a chaotic one for Wolverhampton Wanderers, who lost manager Julen Lopetegui just days before the campaign began, due to a dispute over a lack of signings. His successor, Gary O’Neil, would comfortably steer Wolves away from relegation in time, but his opening game in charge would have hardly filled him with promise.

Chasing an equaliser at Old Trafford, a ball was swung into the box for towering striker Sasa Kalajdzic, who was clattered to the ground by Andre Onana with no contact on the ball. Despite this, VAR decided that there had been no foul, but would apologise almost immediately after the incident occurred.

4

Sweden 6-0 Azerbaijan

Nations League

In a Nations League clash towards the end of 2024, Sweden played host to Azerbaijan. It was an easy victory for the Swedes, who hammered their opponents 6-0 through a brace from Tottenham Hotspur’s Dejan Kulusevski and four goals from Sporting’s lethal finisher, Viktor Gyokeres.

Alexander Isak thought he had got himself on the scoreboard for what would have been Sweden’s fourth goal, but VAR ruled him offside. It was apparent that, in the build up, Isak had been in an offside position. He only touched the ball, however, in an evidently onside position, causing confusion as to why the goal was disallowed.

Though it was of no real impact to the result, the horrific decision saw Pawel Malec and Daniel Stefanski, the officials responsible for the decision, stripped of their responsibilities and banned from officiating any matches under the Polish Football Association.

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3

Portugal 2-0 Uruguay

World Cup

Portugal’s 2-0 victory over Uruguay in the 2022 World Cup ensured that they would progress to the last 16 of the tournament, but it was not without controversy. Towards the end of the game, Portugal, who already had a one-goal lead, were pushing forward when Jose Maria Gimenez attempted to block Bruno Fernandes’ ball into the box.

The ball struck Gimenez’s arm, but it was the arm that was going to ground in order to support the defender as he made the tackle. Abdullah Al-Marri, who had been on VAR for Griezmann’s strike that was controversially ruled out, advised the referee to review the incident.

Despite official guidance having been issued within the 12 months before the game, explaining that an arm positioned for support is not a valid reason to concede a penalty, the penalty was awarded anyway, with Portugal doubling their lead and securing the win as a result of that.

2

Arsenal 1-1 Brentford

Premier League

Lee Mason spent 15 years working within the Premier League, being part of the Select Group Referees list between 2006 and 2021, when he made the decision to retire. From the 2021/22 season, Mason became the first dedicated Video Assistant Referee, though would not spend too long in the position.

Mason was in the hot seat for a game between Arsenal and Brentford in 2023, with the Gunners pushing for the Premier League title. Having held a lead, Brentford equalised through Ivan Toney, who appeared to be offside when Christian Norgaard crossed the ball towards him.

In charge of VAR, Mason did not draw any lines to check whether Toney was onside or not, incorrectly deducing that he was and letting the goal stand. A horrendous error, Mason stepped down from his position just days after.

1

Spurs 2-1 Liverpool

Premier League

Towards the start of last season, Jurgen Klopp’s final campaign in charge of Liverpool, the Reds travelled to London to face Spurs, with both teams having enjoyed strong starts to the campaign. It was an eventful encounter, one that saw Liverpool finish the match, played at a frenetic pace, with nine men.

With the game still goalless, Luis Diaz was played through on goal and scored for Liverpool, but the goal was swiftly ruled out for offside. Not only was there no showing of the lines that led to this decision, but on replay, it was clear that Diaz was well onside, meaning VAR had made yet another astronomical error.

An apologetic statement was issued, as is the norm, but it was a game that Liverpool went on to lose when, really, they should have been the first team to have an advantage in the match.