I think many of us were surprised with the goal being awarded to Japan last night as there was the line followed, by grass, followed by the ball. In other sports that is clearly out, but apparently not in football. The ball does not have to be in contact with the line physically to still be in play which is the mind bender in this case.
FIFA and their stupid rulings have complicated the issue instead of making it simple. Apparently this is not out as the sphere of the ball is still partially over the line. The ball doesn't have to be touching the line which doesn't make any sense. That to anyone using common sense is a good 5-10 cm over the line as the ball is no longer in contact with the line.
The right decision that ultimately sent Germany home early.
The problem with this type of ruling is the rules state the ball has to be over the line and not necessarily touching the line. I looked up the taking of a corner kick and it states it doesn't have to be touching the line, but can over hang as long as there is 1 mm hanging over. This is now making more sense as this is consistent with the Japanese goal being allowed then.
The curve of the ball actually gives you an extra 5 or 10 cm (haven't measured it) than what you think you have.
The same ruling obviously applies to goal line clearances as the entire sphere of the ball has to cross past the goal line to count as a goal. This we see happen when the referees watch vibrates telling him a goal has been scored or not.
This way of applying the rule makes it impossible to play the game fairly unless you have VAR at every match. The obvious solution would be to state the ball has to be in contact with the white wash/line for it to remain alive or it is called out of play.
The Virtual Assistant Referee was introduced to help the referee make the right calls as this ruling before VAR would have been called out. I think the system is great as long as the rulings are consistent, but that is not the case as we have seen over the last few years how bad some of those decisions have been.
As much as I hate to admit this the VAR has got this right according to their rules even when the brain is saying it is clearly out. I have always known about the entire ball having to cross the goal line in football for a goal to be given, but the view of the green grass clearly visible between line and ball is misleading.
In tennis you have sensors (cyclops) which tells you if the ball hit the line or was out. I would still be happier to see the goal line technology stand as is and the rest of the rulings stating the ball has to be in contact with the line as the pitch has increased in size with these laws.
I am pro VAR as it is an added benefit to the game as everyone wants the right decision made as it has to be the same for everyone. If you are refereeing a game you always want to make the right call whether you have called something incorrectly and are over ruled by the VAR system. In the English Premiership we have seen some referees refuse to over rule their decisions as in many cases a junior referee is running the VAR system. In cricket over ruling happen in most games and the umpire is asked politely to change his decision.
For VAR to be widely accepted FIFA need to make this process far more open with the discussions being broadcasted live to the viewers and fans telling them why the decision stand or has been over turned. Having the transparency will take away any idea that some team is being screwed over and this should be their next step. There would have been no confusion with the decision in last nights game
