Why didn’t VAR award France a penalty for trip on Mbappe in World Cup clash with Senegal? | OneFootball

Kylian Mbappe was convinced he had won a penalty in France’s 2026 World Cup opener against Senegal in New Jersey on Tuesday, only to be left flabbergasted as Australian referee Alireza Faghani gave a corner – and then changed his decision to a goal-kick after watching replays.

Mbappe dribbled into the box where Senegal’s Sadio Mane slid in to make a tackle. As Mane reached Mbappe, the France captain touched the ball away from his opponent and then collapsed in a heap under Mane’s challenge. Mbappe could only laugh as the referee waved away French appeals and awarded a corner.

Referee Faghani was sent to review the decision on his pitchside monitor by his VAR, and as he stepped back on to the pitch, French players and coaching staff began to celebrate. But instead of awarding a penalty, Faghani announced: “The attacker initiated the contact.”

To rub salt into French wounds, the corner was overturned after replays clearly showed that Mane made no contact with the ball.

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Sadio Mane slides in on Kylian Mbappe without touching the ball (Reuters)

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Mane was not penalised for the challenge (Reuters)

Pundits were aghast at the decision. “That is just rubbish,” said Pat Nevin on BBC Sport. “Utter nonsense. No chance at all. How can he [Mbappe] have initiated the contact? The most nonsensical line I have ever heard.”

“I don’t get it,” added Alan Shearer. “You can see the lunge from Mane and his left leg catches Mbappe. How can Mbappe initiate contact if he is in front of him? It’s bizarre, it really is.”

“I can’t support the referee’s decision to be honest,” said Darren Cann, an assistant referee at the 2010 World Cup final. “For me it is a clear penalty. My phone has blown up with messages from several of the world’s best referees who also can’t understand why a penalty wasn’t given. For me it is very, very clear and I am extremely surprised he did not point to the spot after a correct VAR review.”

France were not complaining for long. Minutes later, Mbappe latched on to a cleverly disguised throughball by Michael Olise and turned home a first-time finish to put France into the lead. And substitute Bradley Barcola added a second to put the French two goals clear.