VAR was right not to retake Mbappe penalty, say Spanish referees’ committee

The Technical Committee of Referees of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) has backed the decision not to order a retake of Kylian Mbappe’s missed penalty in Real Madrid’s 1-0 defeat by Real Betis.

The committee responded to comments made by Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho, who questioned the decision during a news conference on Monday. Mourinho criticised Iglesias Villanueva, the official in charge of the video assistant referee (VAR) review, and asked why the spot-kick had not been taken again.

“Why was the penalty against Betis not retaken? Was it because the video assistant referee was not aware of the rules? Or did it not want to do so?” Mourinho said.

Mbappe’s penalty was saved, after which Real Madrid appealed for a retake. The club argued that a Real Betis player had entered the penalty area before the kick was taken. The on-field referee did not accept the appeal, and VAR did not intervene.

The refereeing committee reviewed the incident on its programme Tiempo de Revision, where it focused on the position of Marc Bartra during the penalty.

“Mbappe takes the penalty and Vieites saves it; then Bartra pounces on the rebound and clears it for a corner. At the moment the ball is kicked, one of Bartra’s feet is in the air and the other is touching the ground,” the committee said.

It then explained how the relevant International Football Association Board (IFAB) ruling should be applied when a player is moving during the kick.

“If the player is in the air when the penalty is taken, their position is determined by the expected position of their feet if they were touching the ground. The ‘in the air’ law only applies when the entire body is lifted off the ground,” the committee added.

On that basis, the committee concluded that VAR had correctly decided not to recommend a retake.

“Bartra was not in the air because one of his feet was touching the ground. He also did not step on the penalty arc. Bartra committed no offence. The penalty should not be retaken. It is the correct decision by the referee and the video assistant referee,” it said.

The ruling came after Real Madrid’s home defeat by Real Betis, a result that prompted Mourinho’s public criticism of the officiating decision. The controversy centred on whether Bartra’s movement constituted an infringement before Mbappe struck the ball.

The committee’s analysis was released through Tiempo de Revision, a programme used to examine refereeing incidents from the round of matches.

The subject was also promoted on social media by the RFEF referees’ committee under the hashtag #ArbitrajeRFEF and through the account @CTARFEF. Readers were also invited to discuss the issue and other football news in the Kooora forums.