Germany should have been awarded a penalty against Spain – UEFA Referees Committee announce

Germany should have been awarded a penalty against Spain in their Euro 2024 quarter-final, the UEFA Referees Committee have admitted. 

Spain went on to knock Germany out of the competition in the final minute of extra time. Whilst the teams were level during the second half, Jamal Musiala’s shock from the edge of the box was blocked by defender Marc Cucurella. 

Upon review, the ball was blocked with the outreached arm of the Chelsea defender. However, despite the use of VAR, no penalty was awarded. 

The committee has now informed international referees that there was indeed an error in the decision and it should have ended in Germany receiving a penalty. 

The situation has now been included in the latest review by the Referees Committee, which analyses European matches in order to ensure that referees make the correct decisions in similar plays. 

The document issued by the committee explained: “Following the latest UEFA guidelines, hand-to-ball contact that stops a shot on goal should be punished more strictly, and in most cases a penalty kick should be awarded, unless the defender’s arm is very close to the body or in contact with the body. In this case [Cucurella], the defender stops the shot on goal with his arm, which is not very close to the body, making himself bigger, so a penalty kick should have been awarded.”

For Die Mannschaft and fans of the German national team, it’s too little too late and this announcement will only add insult to injury. Many believed that Germany would have gone on to win should the penalty have been awarded and the spotkick scored. 

Spain would go on to win Euro 2024.

GGFN | Jamie Allen