From Iran’s stoppage-time winner ruled out by VAR, to Ghana denied a penalty against England – all the controversies.
On-field officiating and the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) produced some controversial decisions during the 2026 World Cup group stage – in some cases, the technology played a part at ultimately denying teams a shot at qualification to the knockouts or a vital victory.
Al Jazeera takes a look at the five of the most debatable calls in the group stage:
One of the most debatable refereeing calls came in Iran’s 1-1 draw with Egypt on Friday when, in the third minute of stoppage time, substitute Shoja Khalilzadeh’s goal was disallowed after a VAR check.
A wild celebration broke out in Seattle Stadium after defender Khalilzadeh spectacularly poked the ball home from close range – a goal that would have sent Iran into the knockouts for the first time – but Iranian joy quickly turned into heartbreak when VAR said Khalilzadeh was offside in the build-up. Replays showed it was a tight call, with Khalilzadeh offside by barely a millimetre.
In a breathless contest in Miami on Saturday, Davinson Sanchez thought he had secured a stoppage-time win for Colombia over Portugal when, at the far post, he headed home Juan Quintero’s cross. But before Sanchez could reel away to the corner flag in celebrations, the linesman raised the flag for offside.
Replays of the goal showed Sanchez was offside by a toe, which left Colombians feeling they were robbed of a victory that could have maintained their 100 percent record at the tournament.
This kind of offside is nonsense. He’s offside because of the size of his shoe? Come on. It’s so extreme. pic.twitter.com/tTWFkniicm
— Zito (@_Zeets) June 28, 2026
While Ghana were lauded for their gutsy 0-0 draw with England on Tuesday, their fans were left wondering: What if we were awarded a penalty? In the 79th minute of the game in Boston, England’s Ezri Konsa appeared to bring down the charging Prince Kwabena Adu with a lunging tackle in the box.
Making no contact with the ball, defender Konsa caught forward Adu in the knee, but the referee did not award a penalty, a decision which could have given Ghana a chance to take the lead. “VAR went for a coffee,” said a frustrated Carlo Queiroz, the Ghana coach, after the match.
Clear penalty for Ghana but there wasn’t even a VAR check. pic.twitter.com/z7D1KPf4bo
— The Sports Pulse (@Tsportspulse) June 23, 2026
Vinicius Jr thought he had doubled Brazil’s lead against Scotland in the 22nd minute when he took the ball off defender Jack Hendry on the edge of the box and slotted it into the far corner. But VAR recommended an on-field review to the referee, who subsequently ruled it out, claiming Vinicius fouled Hendry in the build-up – a claim that seemed controversial given the soft contact.
Though Brazil went on to win that game 3-0 in Miami, Samir Xaud, the president of the Brazilian football federation (CBF), wrote to FIFA later, requesting “consistent application of VAR intervention standards and referee appointment considerations”.
Although Germany lost 2-1 to Ecuador on Thursday, the manner in which Leroy Sane scored the Germans’ sole goal was controversial.
Within two minutes of kickoff, Sane swept in a first-time shot from Florian Wirtz’s lay-off in the area, but Ecuador were incensed that a foul was not given earlier in the move, when Aleksandar Pavlovic caught Pedro Vite in the head with a high boot. VAR did not intervene, and the goal stood.
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