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      Blundering ref who stepped down after huge VAR error re-hired by bosses… to TRAIN referees

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      PREMIER LEAGUE blunder referee Lee Mason has been re-hired by PGMOL to train referees. Mason stepped down from his position as a Video Assistant Referee after a spectacular error during Arsenal’s clash with Brentford in February.
      Lee Mason has been re-hired by PGMOLCredit: Getty
      It comes after a huge VAR error during Arsenal’s clash with BrentfordCredit: AFP

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      The 51-year-old came under fire after failing to spot an offside in the build-up to Brentford’s equaliser against the then title-chasing Gunners.
      Mason supposedly forgot to draw the lines to see whether Christian Norgaard was offside as Ivan Toney bagged a 74th-minute equaliser.
      He was not picked for VAR duty the following weekend before it was confirmed he had “departed the organisation by mutual consent”.
      However, PGMOL have now turned to Mason to train other referees.
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      The Daily Mail report Mason will work with officials in the Prem, EFL and Women’s Super League, with a particular focus on League One and League Two.
      They add Mason will not work on VAR.
      Former Prem ref Keith Hackett was critical of the move, saying: “The guy who did not set the world alight in the middle but was a survivor and an abject failure in the VAR role will be advising and passing on his skill sets to others.”
      Suffice to say, the move has not gone down very well with fans either.
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      Taking to Twitter, one fan wrote: “You cannot make it up. This is a man who forgot to draw offside lines during the #Arsenal vs Brentford game. Shambles.”
      A second said: “What nonsense!”
      “Lmao this is psychotic, Lee Mason was actively bad at his job and now he’s training the next batch of refs 😂,” remarked a third.
      A fourth typed: “God help us all.”
      While a fifth added: “Shameless.”
      Mason retired from his on-field ref duties at the end of the 2020/21 season after 15 years on the job. More

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      Watch narrowest VAR call in history knock USA out of Women’s World Cup after bizarre Sweden penalty

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      THE US Women’s National Team were eliminated from the Women’s World Cup following one of the narrowest VAR calls you are likely to see.An entire 120 minutes of action was not enough to separate the former world champions and Sweden, leading them to a penalty shootout.
      USA were knocked after the ball narrowly went over the line
      Alyssa Naeher attempted to claw the ball out before it spun into the netCredit: Reuters
      But Lina Hurtig’s strike was deemed to be over the lineCredit: Reuters
      And this turned out to be a thrilling back-and-forth encounter, with the pendulum swinging both ways.
      But it was Sweden who scored the killing blow in the most dramatic of circumstances.
      After Kelly O’Hara had missed the USA’s seventh kick off the shootout, Lina Hurtig stepped up to try and put Sweden into the quarter finals.
      The 27-year-old shot towards her left, but US goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher appeared equal to it as she dived to her right.
      However, Naeher only managed to palm the ball upwards and crucially not over the bar.
      As gravity brought the ball down to earth, the backspin saw the ball tumble towards the goal.
      Naeher scrambled to claw the ball out of net. And the 35-year-old appeared to have succeeded.
      But Hurtig was adamant the ball had crossed the line and could be seen asking the ref to check.
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      Megan Rapinoe was left in tears after the USA’s eliminationCredit: Getty
      Defeat means it is the USWNT’s worst-ever performance at a World Cup.Credit: Getty
      Sweden were ecstatic with their 6-5 shootout winCredit: Reuters
      Swedish players crowded around a phone in the dressing room to see the decisionCredit: Getty
      And following a goal-line technology check, the ref declared the ball had crossed the line, sending the Swedish players into pandemonium as they won 6-5 on penalties.
      VAR images shown after the shootout showed how incredibly tight the call was, with the ball going over the line by the finest of margins.

      And Swedish players were seen checking out the narrow decision in the dressing room after the game, crowding around a mobile phone which displayed the decision.
      Being knocked out left Megan Rapinoe in tears after blazing her penalty over the crossbar.
      It means USA will not be champions for the first time since 2011, with the Stars and Stripes winning in both 2015 and 2019.
      And defeat makes this the USWNT’s worst-ever World Cup appearance, having never failed to make the semi-final stage.
      USA captain Lindsey Horan gave an emotional interview following the game, which ended hopes of a third-straight title.
      She told FOX: “A lot went into this performance. It was about being confident, patient. We played some beautiful football today.
      “This is part of the game. Penalties suck. They are cruel. I’m proud of every player who took a penalty today. It’s courageous.”
      And soccer fans could barely believe the VAR drama they had witnessed, taking to social media.
      One gasped: “That was the craziest shootout I’ve ever seen.”
      Another wrote: “How was that so close??”
      While a third said: “I’m so happy for them. Big win for Sweden.”
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      Of the nations left, the only former World Cup winner remaining is Japan – who will face Sweden in the quarter-finals.
      More to follow…For the latest news on this story, keep checking back at Sun Online.The-sun.com is your go-to destination for the best celebrity news, sports news, real-life stories, jaw-dropping pictures, and must-see videos. Like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TheSunUS and follow us from our main Twitter account at @TheUSSun. More

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      Fans convinced Women’s World Cup is ‘rigged’ after controversial decision that works against England

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      FANS joked the Women’s World Cup is “rigged” after a controversial decision – that went against England.The Lionesses have started their campaign in Australia and New Zealand with 1-0 wins over Haiti and Denmark.
      Haiti felt they should have had a penalty for this piece of defendingCredit: ITV
      The referee checked the VAR monitor but did not give the spot-kickCredit: ITV
      And they would have booked their place in the knockout stages if China failed to beat Haiti.
      The Asian nation were leading 1-0 going into injury time thanks to Wang Shuang’s 74th-minute penalty – despite being down to ten players following  Zhang Rui’s red card just before the half-hour mark.
      But Haiti – and England fans watching on ITV at home – were convinced the Caribbean island were denied a spot-kick of their own in stoppage time.
      Haiti forward Roseline Eloissaint tried to take the ball down in the area.
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      But China defender Chen Qiaozhu clambered over her opponent and headed clear.
      Referee Marta Huerta de Aza went over to the pitchside VAR monitor – but decided there was nothing wrong with the challenge from Qiaozhu.
      Haiti had earlier seen two other penalty appeals waved away for strong challenges in the China box.
      And supporters flooded social media with claims the Fifa tournament had been fixed to help China – with comments of “robbed” and “disgrace”.
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      One said: “This World Cup is rigged – that’s the third penalty for Haiti not called.”
      Another wrote: “Nah that Haiti-China women’s game is rigged. Obvious penalty last minute.”
      A third added: “That wasn’t a penalty? The international campaign against Haiti continues.”
      A fourth commented: “Hard not to feel heartbroken for Haiti. Honestly cannot understand how they didn’t get a penalty on at least one of those three (!) possible fouls – and not even a VAR check on one.”
      And a final user replied: “The refereeing in the China-Haiti match was awful. Two or three clear penalties in that match and VAR didn’t step in at all. A shambles or match-fixing?”
      It is the latest chaos involving VAR after the referee in Spain’s win over Zambia had to publicly make a huge U-turn to announce a goal.
      China held on for nine minutes of injury time to secure their first win at the World Cup – and keep their hopes of reaching the knockout stages alive.
      However, they must better Denmark’s result against Haiti when they face England on Tuesday.
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      Sarina Wiegman’s masterstroke to bring Lauren James into the starting XI reaped its rewards within six minutes against Denmark.
      But the win was marred by a serious injury to midfield star Keira Walsh, who appeared to suffer significant damage to her knee when making an interception just before half-time.
      China secured a 1-0 win to give themselves a chance of reaching the knockoutsCredit: AP More

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      Chaos at Women’s World Cup as nervous referee announces VAR decision before saying ‘no, wait!’

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      THE Women’s World Cup was plunged into momentary chaos after a referee announced the wrong decision after a VAR review.Spain had put in a good showing as they beat Zambia 5-0 at Eden Park in New Zealand.
      Referee Oh-Hyeon Jeong caused confusion during Spain’s win over ZambiaCredit: Getty
      Hyeon-Jeong initially did not give Jennifer Hermoso’s goalCredit: BBC
      Hermoso looked confused as the announcement was madeCredit: BBC
      But the official then quickly corrected her callCredit: BBC
      And Hemroso was thrilled when she realised that a goal had eventually been givenCredit: BBC
      However, the most intriguing moment came from referee Oh-Hyeon Jeong while there was a VAR check on Jennifer Hermoso’s goal in 70th minute.
      Hermoso had already netted earlier in the game but her second was initially ruled out as Olga Carmona was flagged offside in the build-up to the goal.
      After the lengthy check, it seemed that the Spaniard would be allowed the goal until Oh-Hyeon Jeong appeared to stick with her original decision.
      The official announced that the decision was “no goal!”, which was then met with boos from the crowd.
      READ MORE WOMEN’S WORLD CUP NEWS
      This then saw the referee backtrack and say: “No, wait… no offside – Goal!”
      But for a second the Spanish team were left confused due to the dodgy announcement before realising that the goal had been given.

      The players then wheeled off to celebrate their fourth goal of the game.
      It was not the last action of the match as Alba Redondo then netted her second of the game in the 85th minute.
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      During the Women’s World Cup history was made as referees are announcing VAR decisions to the spectators in the stadium through a microphone.
      It is the first time that this has been done at a senior international tournament.
      The trial by Fifa was also done at the Men’s Club World Cup and Men’s U20 World Cup earlier in the year.
      If the trial is deemed a success it could then arrive in major European competitions like the Premier League. More

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      Women’s World Cup makes history with huge VAR change but Alex Scott says ‘it’s like being in the Hunger Games’

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      THE Women’s World Cup made history with a VAR decision announced by the referee to the stadium for the first time.But Alex Scott joked it was like something out of the Hunger Games.
      Referee Yoshimi Yamashita confirmed her VAR decision to the whole stadiumCredit: Getty
      The Japanese official checked the monitorCredit: AFP

      Fifa made the decision for the tournament in New Zealand and Australia to allow referees to announce the calls.
      And in the very first match of the tournament, Yoshimi Yamashita had the chance to make the most of the new protocols.
      With just three minutes to go before full-time, Caroline Graham Hansen appeared to handle the ball although initially play carried on.
      But Yamashita was advised to take a look at a replay on the pitch-side monitor before deciding a penalty was the correct decision.
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      And when the Japanese official had made up her mind, she announced through her microphone at the Eden Park stadium PA system: “After an on-field review, the decision is: penalty.”
      The announcement was met by delighted cheers from the New Zealand players and the hosts’ home crowd – although Ria Percival hit the bar before the Football Ferns held on for a shock 1-0 win over 1995 champions Norway.

      But Alex Scott in the BBC studio could not help but compare the ref’s booming voice to the Hunger Games.
      The former Arsenal and England defender said: “I couldn’t help but laugh.
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      “I felt like I was in the Hunger Games.”
      Others were delighted by the progression to keep fans in the loop – but many felt more still needs to be done.
      One said: “Great step in the right direction. Let’s people know what is going on. VAR in the men’s game is far too “cloak and dagger” with fans in the stadium and watching on TV having no clue how decisions are made.”
      Another added: “Good step in the right direction but we need to hear the conversation between room and ref.”
      A third wrote: “We don’t want an announcement, we want to hear the discussions with the VAR officials.”
      And a final user wrote: “I was expecting to hear the referee’s reasoning behind the decision, as we do in cricket, rugby, NFL etc. This is absolutely laughable.”
      Ria Percival crashed her effort against the crossbarCredit: Getty More

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      Ex-Tottenham star praises ‘game-changer’ new rule that will ‘definitely bring more goals’ to Premier League

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      FORMER Tottenham star Alan Hutton has praised a game-changing rule that could bring more goals to the Premier League.Fifa have proposed a law that could massively help strikers.
      The new offside rule proposed means all the attacker’s body has to be beyond the defender for the flag to go up
      Alan Hutton thinks defenders will find it harderCredit: Getty
      With the new rule in place, an attacker’s entire body would have to be beyond the last defender for it to be deemed offside.
      Fifa are set to trial the change in pre-season clashes in Netherlands, Italy and Sweden.
      Arsene Wenger is believed to have been key in pushing the testing of the idea forward from his role as Fifa’s Chief of Global Football Development.
      It would see the numbers of goals chalked off decrease and hopefully lead to less frequent time-consuming VAR checks.
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      Several controversial goals last season were disallowed due to marginal offsides.
      Manchester United’s controversial 2-1 derby win over Manchester City in January is one of the goals to have triggered a potential rule change due to the calls for the laws to be clearer.
      Bruno Fernandes netted after Marcus Rashford appeared to be offside in the build-up.
      Hutton, who played for Spurs and Aston Villa, believes it could help the game.
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      He told Football Insider: “It’s a game-changer, there will definitely be more goals within the game, no doubt about that.
      “Obviously this favours the attacker, they get maybe that yard on a defender and as a defender, especially if you were a centre-half, it will be very difficult, as you’re going to have to hold such a high line.
      “But I do get it, there’s such a grey area at times and when VAR was introduced with offside rules, we were talking about the width of the hair.
      “It will be much easier to differentiate between onside and offside now, and a correct decision will be made.
      “There will certainly be more goals and more excitement.”
      The Premier League are currently against bringing in semi-automated offsides as seen at the World Cup. More

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      Uefa to change rules of Euro U21 Championship half way through tournament after controversial clash

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      UEFA are set to make a rule change half way through the Under-21 European Championships following shocking decisions in the Italy vs France game. Until now, there has been no use of VAR or goal-line technology during the tournament in Romania and Georgia, but that looks set to change.
      It looked as if a ball had crossed the line during France’s clash with Italy, but the referee did not award a goal
      According to Gianluca Di Marzio, Uefa are now planning on introducing VAR into the competition from the quarter-finals onwards.
      This comes after the referee, Allard Lindhout, was the centre of attention for all the wrong reasons following Italy’s loss to France yesterday.
      Lindhout seemed to miss an number of different flashpoints which were spotted by those watching the game, including a foul in the build up to France’s winner on Caleb Okoli and a handball by Pierre Kalulu in his own box.
      Perhaps most infuriatingly though was also a ‘ghost goal’ that the Dutch referee missed, when Raoul Bellanova scored an equaliser in the dying embers of the match.
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      However, neither Lindhout or his assistant saw the ball cross the line.
      The apparent mistakes meant that France wound up 2-1 winners, leaving Italy boss Paolo Nicolato fuming with the decisions.
      Speaking to Sky Italy after the game, he said: “I don’t expect the referee’s apologies, he too won’t be satisfied with himself.
      “The impression I get is that the referees are used to using VAR; without it, they no longer know how to make decisions quickly.
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      “I think a referee who makes his passion his job, if he reviews the match, is the first not to be satisfied with himself.”
      He went on to say: “I’m sorry to go back to it, but it’s not just a question of VAR.
      “There have been some episodes that have little to do with VAR and that the whole stadium saw without the need for VAR.
      “I’m referring in particular to the foul on Okoli which happened in front of me and there was both the fourth official and the linesman.” More

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      Panama stars perform wild train celebration after stunning overhead kick… only for goal to be ruled out by VAR

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      EIGHT Panama players celebrated a sensational overhead kick strike by hilariously forming a train… only for VAR to disallow the goal.The brilliant moment came during the CONCACAF Nations League third-place match between Panama and Mexico.
      Anibal Godoy scored a breathtaking overhead kick for PanamaCredit: CBS Sports

      Godoy, far right, then led a wonderful train celebration with his team-matesCredit: CBS Sports
      The Panama players were loving it, but moments later the goal was ruled outCredit: CBS Sports
      Jesus Gallardo had given Mexico the lead after just four minutes at the Allegiant Stadium in Nevada on Sunday.
      But Panama thought they had pulled level 10 minutes into the second half with a special goal.
      A free-kick routine saw the ball floated into the box for Anibal Godoy, before the central midfielder chested it down and acrobatically executed an overhead kick to perfection.
      Godoy, 33, immediately sprinted over towards the corner flag and urged his team-mates to get in a line behind him.
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      Seven red shirts proceeded to join him on the floor and Godoy then appeared to pretend he was driving a train.
      All of his fellow Panamanian players copied him with the superb celebration, but their ecstasy would be short-lived.
      Moments later, the goal would be ruled out for offside following a VAR check.
      And football fans on social media bemoaned the cruel nature of how it unfolded.
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      One said: “After all that stunt 😭.”
      Another added: “Godoy did all that and just to have it taken away. Feel sorry for him.”
      A third replied: “That was a goal but the ref is a joke.”
      And a fourth simply responded: “Unfair.”
      Mexico held on to win the game 1-0 to seal third place in the CONCACAF Nations League.
      USA claimed the title by beating Canada 2-0 in the final. More