FIFA has stepped in following Japan’s very contentious goal against Spain during the World Cup in Qatar. The goal scored by Dusseldorf’s Ao Tanaka was verified by video referees using the goal-line camera, the international organization said on Twitter.
According to FIFA, the ball was “not completely out of the game according to the information available”.
Tanaka succeeded with his cross after Kaoru Mitoma of Japan scratched the ball off the baseline. Whether the ball had crossed the goal line or was still in play was up for discussion among football fans everywhere. The green turf between the ball and the line may really be seen in side views that distort perspective.
“Other cameras can provide misleading images,” FIFA added.
The world association demonstrated its point with a video that indicates the ball was still a few millimeters on the line. Japan maintained its advantage over time.
Germany, which would have advanced to the round of 16 if the Japanese had drawn, was eliminated in the World Cup preliminary round like they did in Russia four years ago.
