The Video Assistant Referee (VAR) continues to spark debate every week, whether in the Premier League, Champions League, or FA Cup. But how are these decisions reached, and can they be deemed accurate?
This season, we will analyze significant incidents to shed light on the decision-making process, focusing on both VAR protocols and the Laws of the Game.
Andy Davies (@andydaviesref) is a former Select Group referee with over 12 seasons in the top tier, officiating in the Premier League and Championship. His extensive experience at the elite level includes involvement in VAR operations in the Premier League, offering a unique perspective on the processes, logic, and protocols employed on matchdays.
Referee: Sandro Schärer
VAR: Carlos del Cerro Grande
Time: 45+ minutes
Incident: VAR overturned initial decision — penalty awarded for a handball.
What occurred: PSG forward Ousmane Dembélé made an attempted cross that struck the arm of Bayern’s Alphonso Davies. Initially, Schärer dismissed the penalty appeals, but VAR suggested a review of his decision. After deliberation, Schärer reversed his ruling and awarded a penalty.
VAR decision: VAR recommended that Schärer review the on-field incident for a potential penalty. Upon reviewing footage, VAR concluded that Davies’ intentional arm movement away from his body resulted in an unnaturally enlarged silhouette. Even though the ball deflected off Davies’ body first, both the referee and VAR agreed that the criteria for a handball offense had been met, leading to the penalty award.
Conclusion: This decision will likely be perceived as very harsh against Bayern Munich, especially considering the short distance and the ball’s deflection off the defender’s body before hitting his arm. There is significant sympathy for Bayern in this scenario. However, current interpretations of the handball law allow for subjective judgments when the ball initially makes contact with a body part.
Factors in situations like this involve the player’s arm/hand position relative to their movement at that moment. When there is a clear deflection causing a major alteration in the ball’s path, this should be weighted more heavily than arm position alone. Nonetheless, contact with another body part before the arm does not prevent a handball offense from being called. In this case, the referee and VAR concluded that Davies’ deliberate arm movement could not be justified, resulting in a handball offense being recorded.
I suspect that UEFA may not support this penalty decision, despite the lower threshold for handballs in their competitions. It’s also noteworthy that this type of situation would not typically result in a penalty in the Premier League, and it ultimately became a pivotal moment in determining the game’s outcome.