Basque derby VAR error raises wider questions over La Liga’s goal-line technology

A disputed penalty in the Basque derby has triggered an unprecedented crisis of confidence in Spanish refereeing after a report from the ball’s manufacturer acknowledged a technical fault in the technology used to support the decision.

Athletic Club were awarded a penalty in their 2-1 win over Real Sociedad after a challenge involving Jon Aramburu and Nico Williams. The decision was based partly on a signal from the smart chip inside the match ball, but an investigation commissioned by the Technical Committee of Referees found that the data did not match the video evidence.

Former international referee Iturralde Gonzalez said the development had “cast doubt on everything”.

Manu Carreno, speaking on Cadena SER’s El Larguero programme, said the refereeing committee had urgently requested a report from German company KINEXON, which manufactures the chip embedded in the ball.

The committee initially said the penalty had been given because the ball’s signal indicated that Nico Williams was the last player to touch it. However, the report identified two peaks in the signal which did not correspond with the VAR video.

KINEXON admitted there was a “slight synchronisation difference, of one or two frames, between the ball’s signal and the video from the video assistant referee”. It added that “the most prominent peak coincides with the moment Real Sociedad player Aramburu reached the ball”.

The refereeing committee maintained that “the VAR room’s decision was correct at that moment given the limited evidence available”. It nevertheless accepted that, “in light of the report’s conclusions, the Real Sociedad player was the last to touch the ball, which could mean the penalty decision was incorrect”.

Iturralde questions marginal offside calls

Iturralde said Carlos del Cerro Grande’s decision was understandable based on the information available during the incident. But once the ball’s “electrocardiogram”, as he described the signal, was displayed and a delay of between 20 and 40 milliseconds became apparent, he argued it was clear that Aramburu had touched the ball last and that no penalty should have been awarded.

He said the broader consequences were more serious. Under the new chip-based system, “the machine is the one capturing the frame”, and the company’s admission of a synchronisation problem had “cast doubt” over every marginal offside decision made since the start of the season.

“Are all those goals up to the 11th round, where marginal offsides were given either for or against a team, legitimate?” Iturralde asked. “We do not know whether this 20 or 40 millisecond lack of synchronisation happened only in the Basque derby or in other matches as well.”

Carreno said technological failures were possible, just as human errors were, but added that the issue was now being encountered “every day”. The controversy has further challenged confidence in the system, particularly after recent comments from La Liga president Javier Tebas.

Tebas had called for greater VAR involvement and said it should have intervened during an attack involving Mbappe. Iturralde responded: “It is unbelievable for the La Liga president to say VAR should intervene in the Mbappe incident when, only seven minutes earlier, there was a Diomande stamp and it did not intervene. He seems to have completely forgotten that.”

Iturralde concluded with a warning: “A little respect for the Technical Committee of Referees.”