[Advantage / Handball] The disciplinary action when the ball goes straight into the goal after striking an arm

At first sight this looks like an unremarkable goal, but it in fact involves something connected to the 2026/27 changes to the Laws of the Game. The relevant passage is the following, from Law 12. ====== If the referee plays the advantage for an offence for which a caution/sending-off would have been issued had play been stopped, (...). However, if the offence was denying the opposing team an obvious goal-scoring opportunity, the player is cautioned for unsporting behaviour, except where a goal is scored by the non-offending team as a result of the advantage having been played, in which case there is no disciplinary sanction; if the offence was interfering with or stopping a promising attack, the player is not cautioned. ====== Watching the scene again, it can be seen that after the Hiroshima player's shot the ball strikes the arm of the Nagoya Grampus player who had come in to defend. The Nagoya player is making a sliding challenge and the ball strikes the arm with the hand spread, but after striking it the ball goes straight into the goal. The ball was on its way into the goal, and had the player prevented the goal with the hand or arm, a sending-off would have been given. On this occasion, however, this is a case where a player attempted to prevent a goal with the hand or arm but the ball went in anyway, so no disciplinary sanction is required. Some may think that because the goal was scored the sanction is reduced by one step to a yellow card. The correct course of action, however, is to allow the goal and take no disciplinary action; that is, to show no card. It is a scene in which the content of the amendment is clearly on display.