On Change.org, fans have penned a petition calling for a replay of the Euro 2024 quarter-final match between Germany and Spain. The controversy arose in the 106th minute during extra time, as the teams were battling to determine the winner.

In this crucial moment, Musiala fired a powerful shot that struck Cucurella’s hand in the penalty area. The handball was evident, with the Spanish defender clearly altering the ball’s trajectory without his hand being close to his body. Everyone expected a penalty to be awarded. However, referee Anthony Taylor saw things differently.

Following advice from VAR assistant Stuart Atwell, referee Taylor waved off the incident and allowed the match to continue. He did not review the situation on the pitchside monitor, escalating the controversy to a fever pitch.

This marked the second instance in Euro 2024 where referee Taylor made a decision without personally consulting the VAR monitor, relying entirely on the VAR team instead.

This has led to significant outrage among German fans. In the petition, a fan named Erik argued that Anthony Taylor was unreasonable in not awarding a penalty to Germany. Fans also pointed out that the English referee made other mistakes, such as overlooking Nacho’s foul on Fullkrug in the penalty area in the 77th minute. If these errors had been rectified, Germany might have been awarded penalties and scored.

Despite the petition gathering hundreds of thousands of signatures, including from many neutral fans, it is highly unlikely that UEFA will organize a replay of the quarter-final match.

Even UEFA supports referee Taylor. Roberto Rosetti, the head of UEFA’s referees’ committee, stated that Taylor was justified in not awarding a penalty because Cucurella’s arm was moving naturally with his body in an almost upright position. According to the latest UEFA rule changes this season, Taylor had grounds to deny the penalty.