10 Biggest Refereeing Scandals In Football History

10 Biggest Refereeing Scandals In Football History

As a referee in football, you are in the spotlight at all times. No decision goes unnoticed from football fans, and certainly not a bad one at that. Football Park have chosen their list of the worst refereeing scandals in football history and there are some controversial choices on this list.

10. Lampard vs Germany No Goal

Cast your mind back to the 2010 World Cup where Fabio Capello was at the helm for England. The Three Lions managed to reach the last-sixteen, following a shaky group stage where they drew to the United States and Algeria, therefore having to settle for second place.

After failing to win the group they subsequently would face Germany in the first knockout game. Going into half-time 2-1 down, England had everything to play for in the second-half. Up stepped Frank Lampard from a free-kick, which was hit with power and pace, beating Manuel Neuer in the Germany goal and crashing off the inside of the bar. Surely that was over the line, was what every fan was thinking, but no the referee turned away and play continued.

Instant replay's showed the ball was comfortably inside the goal. If only goal line technology was introduced three years sooner and it could have saved England fans more heartbreak as Germany eventually won the game 4-1.

9. Rivaldo Conned The Referee

It was the 2002 World Cup and Brazil were at the peak of their powers with stars like Ronaldo, Roberto Carlos, Cafu, Ronaldinho and Rivaldo. In a group stage game against Turkey, the Brazilian's were awarded a corner that Rivaldo went over to take. Opposing player Hakan Unsal kicked the ball in the direction of the winger, striking his leg. For some reason, Rivaldo went down in dramatic fashion holding his face as though it hit him way higher than in reality.

Amazingly the referee fell for it and handed Unsal a second booking and he was sent off. Repercussions came for Rivaldo, who had to pay £5000 in fines, but he was not suspended for any of the remaining games in the tournament. Brazil would go on to lift the trophy, which remains the last time that they have managed to do so.

#OnThisDay 2002
Brazil got their World Cup campaign off to a winning start against Turkey. Ronaldo and a late Rivaldo penalty gave them victory.

They were helped by this shocking dive from Rivaldo.

What has the lineman seen?! 👀pic.twitter.com/RTVGjCHawt

— Football Remind ⚽️ (@FootballRemind) June 3, 2023

8. The Roy Carroll Blunder

Tottenham travelled to Old Trafford for a Premier League clash in January 2005. Pedro Mendes' hopeful volleying effort from the just inside the United half in the final ten minutes of the game was spilled by Roy Carroll and as he desperately tried to recover the situation. With the ball spinning towards the goal, he clawed it away from the net and to safety.

It appeared that the ball clearly crossed the line and a subtle gasp could be heard from the home crowd, but the referee and linesman let play continue. The game cost Spurs a crucial away win as it ended goaless. It was so far over the line that Carroll gave a nervous look to the referee on his way to retrieve the ball after scooping it away from his goal.

7. Nani Ludicrous goal against Spurs

In one of the most bizarre passages of play ever seen, Man United and Spurs were in action once again at Old trafford. This time in 2010 and Portuguese winger Nani was charging down on goal when he appeared to be fouled inside the box. As the Man United player had thought he'd won the penalty, he purposely handled the ball, with referee Mark Clattenburg instead waving play on.

He didn't give a foul against Nani for the intentional handling, but Spurs keeper Heurelho Gomes seemed unaware of this decision, as he placed the ball down as if it was a free-kick. A hesitant Nani got back to his feet and took the ball from Gomes, tentatively passing it into the empty net. After some discussion with the referee and the linesman the goal was given.

6. AFCON Referee Loses Track Of Time

Back at the 2022 African Cup Of Nations, Tunisia played against Mali. The game was overshadowed by huge controversery involving the referee. The man in the middle seemingly lost track of time and blew the final whistle in the 85th minute.

Janny Sikazwe was the referee who made the mistake, which he quickly realised with help from players and coaching staff signalling that he had blown his whistle prematurely. No more issues now with five minutes left you'd think... Wrong, as Sikazwe blew his whistle for full-time once again too soon in the 89th minute with Tunisia looking for an equalising goal.

Outraged Tunisia players and manager Mondher Kebaier confronted the referee on the pitch about the decison. Tunisia were later invited to return to the field 25 minutes after the incident to play the outstanding time in the game, which they refused...

🌍 2nd half of Tunisia vs Mali

🚶‍♂️ 9 substitutions
👀 2 penalties awarded
🔴 1 red card
🤯 Referee blows up for full-time at 85th minute & finally on 89:50 with no added time

Just another day at AFCON 😅 pic.twitter.com/Pwl1x9u9jh

— ODDSbible (@ODDSbible) January 12, 2022

5. Liverpool vs Spurs Offside Goal

Back in the 2023/24 Premier League season, Tottenham welcomed Liverpool to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Luis Diaz scored in the first half for the reds, but offside was given on-field. With it being a very tight call, the decision by the linesman was checked by VAR.

With the check of the goal being broadcasted for all watching, there was little room for error. The offside lines were put in place and Diaz was clearly onside by a stride length. What followed was a complete error in communication as VAR just said check complete to referee Simon Cooper, not stating that the on-field decision of offside should have been overturned. Once the game restarted the rules state the decision could not be changed. Absolute Chaos!

4. Kick-Out On Nantes Player

A moment of pure madness happened in the French first division back in 2018. As Nantes were trailing to PSG 1-0 with the game ticking into extra-time, the Parisians hit them on the counter attack. With defender Diego Carlos desperate to try and get back to prevent a second from PSG, he inadvertently collided with referee Tony Chapron, who went tumbling to the ground.

What happened next was unimaginable. A red mist came over Chapron, who kicked out at Carlos after seemingly thinking the defender purposely threw the official to the floor, which was not the case. The referee immediately showed the Brazilian a second booking and a red card, much to the disbelief of the entire stadium.

⚠️ Stop scrolling and watch this video ⚠️

Referee Tony Chapron kicks out at Diego Carlos and then sends him off in a moment of madness in Ligue 1... 😱 pic.twitter.com/F1Ou6wt8QN

— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) January 14, 2018

3. Thierry Henry Hand Ball

In a World Cup qualifier in 2009 between France and Republic of Ireland, Thierry Henry would blatently handle the ball in the final moments of the game to prevent it from going out of play. He'd then square the ball across goal to William Gallas for a tap-in.

He had not only controlled the ball with his hand, but struck it for a second time to make it easier to provide the crucial assist. The goal gave France a 2-1 win on aggregate in the final minutes of extra-time. Republic of Ireland made complaints to FIFA authorities demanding that sanctions were placed on France for the actions of Henry, but no further action was taken despite the incident costing the Irish a place in the tournament.

2. Three Bookings For One Player

It was the 2006 World Cup and Croatia were set to face Australia in the group stage. British referee Graham Poll was allocated the game and he managed to do something that has never been seen before. Defender Josip Simunic was the victim of being shown three... yes not two, but THREE yellow cards before eventually being dismissed.

Graham Poll had somehow miscounted or not documented that Simunic was already on a yellow card, when he showed him the second booking. It was a poor day at the office all round for the man in the middle, who also blew for full-time as Australia were about to seemingly find a winning goal, with the ball about to cross the line. He also missed a clear hand ball inside the box.

1. 'Hand of God'

One of the most historic moments in the history of football came in the 1986 World Cup between Argentina and England. The magician Diego Maradona was the danger man for the South American side, but the way in which he converted the opener could not have been predicted by anyone prior to kick-off.

After realising that Peter Shilton would beat the little Argentine to the bouncing ball, he took matters into his own hands and deliberately handled the ball to redirect it away from the England goalkeeper and into the back of the net. The referee missed it and the England players were furious.

The second goal from Maradona was out of this world and labelled 'goal of the century' as he dribbled past four or five Three Lions players, taking it past Shilton before finishing into the empty goal.

🗓 ON THIS DAY | 1986

🇦🇷 Diego Maradona used his hand to knock the ball over Peter Shilton and into the England net.

The birth of the 'Hand of God'. pic.twitter.com/KUZ3aXC1cn

— FourFourTwo (@FourFourTwo) June 22, 2018