Referee Review
Why was this decision made?
See the key points from a referee’s perspective
Show explanation
Referee Review
Why was this decision made?
See the key points from a referee’s perspective
Show explanationHow the footage and Laws apply
In a high-stakes moment inside the penalty area, the referee judged the incident from a good position. This was a good decision. The question in this scene is whether the Omiya goalkeeper stopped Sendai's No. 8, who was dribbling past, by making contact. Looking closely at the footage, Sendai's No. 8 also appears to go down before making contact with the goalkeeper. The referee had an excellent position to see the incident clearly, and appears to have recognised that the player went down on their own, as if trying to win a foul, and so judged it as no foul. What do you think? Was there an offence that should have led to a penalty kick, or was the referee right to judge that there was no contact and no foul?
Relevant Laws
Law 12 – Fouls and Misconduct / Law 5 – The Referee
Official references
Check the wording of the Laws
The links above lead to official IFAB and JFA resources. The application of the Laws to this incident is the author’s analysis and is not an official view of IFAB, JFA or the competition organiser.
Fair challenge or foul? Watch the clip and check the reasoning.
Check the line between careless, reckless and excessive force on video, then try a related quiz.
Watch foul clips in the appRelated Scenes
[Advantage] A difficult advantage decision near the halfway line leading to a goal on the counter-attack | 2026/27 J2 League Matchweek 2 Fujieda MYFC vs Iwaki FC
[Advantage] A well-judged advantage after a foul deep in their own half leading to a goal | 2026/27 J2 League Matchweek 3 Jubilo Iwata vs Tokushima Vortis