Dale JohnsonJul 29, 2025, 04:00 AM ETCloseFollow on X
Dale JohnsonJul 29, 2025, 04:00 AM ET
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Video Assistant Referee always causes controversy, and that was no different atEuro 2025. So how were the decisions made, and were they correct?
We rank the decisions from the tournament that may seem odd but can actually be explained.
What happened:Norwaywere awarded a penalty in the 58th minute whenAda Hegerbergwas pulled down inside the area byItaly’sElena Linari, with the ball ending up in the gloves of goalkeeperLaura Giuliani. However, Hegerberg was clearly offside as the ball was played, so why did the penalty not get overturned?
VAR decision:Penalty stands, missed by Hegerberg.
VAR review:It’s one of those aspects of the offside law that crops up every now and again — and it’s so rare that it’s always forgotten when it does.
A player in an offside position doesn’t commit an offense until they become active, which is usually by directly engaging with an opponent or trying to play the ball.
The law says: “A player in an offside position is moving towards the ball with the intention of playing the ball and is fouled before playing or attempting to play the ball, or challenging an opponent for the ball, the foul is penalized as it has occurred before the offside offence.”
Hegerberg was waiting for the ball to come into the box and made no attempt to interact with Linari — who wrapped both arms around the attacker.
Referee Stéphanie Frappart pointed to the spot, and the VAR, Willy Delajod, agreed that Hegerberg hadn’t committed an offside offence and the penalty stood.
We saw this happen in thePremier Leaguelast season whenNewcastle United’sFabian Schärwas held back byAFC BournemouthdefenderAdam Smith. Schär was in an offside position, but there was a VAR intervention to award a spot kick.
The law is still subjective, however. The day before Norway were awarded a penalty, men’s team KF Shkëndijahad a spot kick canceledagainst the New Saints in aChampions Leaguequalifier on VAR review when Imran Fetai was ruled offside after being pulled down.
The incident was very similar to that of Hegerberg, yet it yielded the opposite result.
Source: Espnsoccer
