Real Madrid penalty decision fuels fresh criticism of Spanish refereeing

The controversy surrounding Real Madrid’s penalty in their 3-0 victory over Racing continues, with radio analysts Raul Varela and Matias Prats launching strong criticism of the decision and claiming Spanish VAR has become “contaminated”.

The incident came during La Liga’s 11th round, when referee Munuera Montero awarded Real Madrid a spot-kick after Kylian Mbappe went down following what was described as minor contact with Racing player Ivan Martin.

The decision has remained a major talking point, with the analysts discussing it on La Tribu, a programme broadcast by Radio Marca. Their comments were reported by Sport.

Varela accused the referee of creating the penalty rather than reacting to a clear foul.

“Munuera Montero invented a penalty after Mbappe’s theatrical fall,” he said.

He then added: “The referee had finished signing autographs in the car park at El Sardinero. All of this happens in order to steal the spotlight.”

Prats was similarly critical of the Spanish officials and the use of video technology.

“What a disaster,” he said. “Spanish refereeing is the worst in Europe. VAR has clearly become contaminated. What could be clearer than awarding an incorrect penalty?”

Prats also referred to a recent incident involving Athletic Bilbao, praising the club’s manager for admitting that a refereeing error had gone in his team’s favour.

“I really liked the attitude of the Athletic Bilbao manager when he admitted that the referee had made a mistake in favour of his team,” he said.

However, he also criticised Mourinho, saying the manager had previously indicated that he would acknowledge decisions that benefited his side but had failed to do so on this occasion.

“But Mourinho is Mourinho, and he will remain that way until the end,” Prats said. “He said he would admit it if the officials made any decision in his favour, but yesterday he missed a great opportunity to do that.”

He returned to the penalty incident in his final assessment, arguing that the decision reflected badly on the standard of officiating.

“ awarding this penalty is proof that the referee is extremely poor,” Prats said.

The page also carried a separate fixture listing showing AEK Athens in the Champions League on 04 November 2026, Real Madrid against Malaga in La Liga on 07 November 2026, and Racing Santander. It also included a reference to discussing football topics and news in Kooora forums.