No VAR in the DFB-Pokal: Frankfurt rue controversial BVB goal | OneFootball

Borussia Dortmund benefits in the DFB-Pokal from a controversial decision. An irregular goal against Eintracht Frankfurt sparks new debates about the absence of VAR.

During the DFB-Pokal victory of Borussia Dortmund at Eintracht Frankfurt (5:3 on penalties), a goal by Julian Brandt caused plenty of discussion. The equalizer to make it 1-1 shortly after halftime probably should not have counted according to TV footage—but the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) was not yet in use in this round of the DFB-Pokal.

In the build-up to the scene, Maximilian Beier was apparently just offside when receiving a pass from Brandt. After several touches, the ball ended up back with Brandt, who slotted it in from close range. Referee Sven Jablonski allowed the goal to stand, and the assistant’s flag stayed down. “From my feeling, I would say the player was slightly offside,” explained referee expert Thorsten Kinhöfer on ZDF. “But you can see it’s a matter of millimeters, and without VAR it’s hard to prove.”

Frankfurt’s players also immediately protested the offside position. “We protested it right away during the game. Even before the situation was over, several of our players had already indicated it,” reported captain Robin Koch on Sky. But for Eintracht, it remained a factual decision—the equalizer stood.

BVB in luck: Frankfurt’s frustration over irregular equalizer

Frankfurt’s sporting director Markus Krösche took the scene calmly, though visibly annoyed: “It’s a close decision. VAR isn’t there, so we simply have to accept it.”

The lack of technical support once again led to debates about the competition conditions in the cup. VAR is only used from the round of 16 onwards. The DFB justifies this with organizational and personnel hurdles: “At the beginning, many small and lower-league clubs are involved in the competition. Installing VAR in all stadiums, which would have to be done with mobile vans outside the stadiums, would be a significant economic and organizational effort,” the association stated. In addition, the personnel requirements in the early rounds are simply too great.

Thus, a controversial goal remained uncorrected—and Borussia Dortmund benefited from the absence of video review. Once again, it became clear: Even the lack of VAR continues to fuel heated debates in German football.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.