goal... or not...

This morning, England was defeated on the field by arch-enemy, Germany. (Final score Germany 4, England 1)

It should have been a great game, but the game was marred by another really awful call, this time the sideline judge failed to see the goal scored by the English team which had the potential of changing the direction of the game by tying the score 2-2. (For those who missed the game, it really was a beautiful goal!)

But frankly, I don’t know how he missed it.

I've been a proponent for some time of including electronics in the game. Why? Objectivity.

There might be bad calls by field refs, or missed calls, but when electronics becomes part of the equation, those missed/bad calls will become a thing of the past. Clearly, all calls are subjective when called by an individual. Referees might miss something because they’re thinking about what they did, or didn’t consume at the dinner table... They might carry a grudge against a team from the last match they refereed. Who knows?

Electronics could change the game, make it cleaner and better. All those who advocate for continuation of the sport sans electronics are advocating for the possibility of payola or a continuation of the really bad calls that seem to have pervaded this 2010 World Cup.

By the way, there was another game this morning. Mexico vs. Argentina (final score Argentina 3, Mexico 1). And guess what... there was another controversy. As Argentina thundered down the field, they kicked hard toward the goal. However, one of the Argentinian players (Carlos Tevez) was clearly offsides and again, the line ref missed the call. Angry Mexican players immediately surrounded referee, Roberto Rosetti who then went into conference with the line judge. As he came back on the field, he let the goal stand.

In my estimation, a grave injustice was done in two games back to back.   

Tragically, FIFA doesn’t even address some of these failures when they post the results. According to reports, FIFA said in a statement that it “will not make any comments on decisions of the referee on the field of play.” Perhaps they should reconsider their decision because millions of people around the world are watching these games and would like to see their game well-played and equally – well-judged.

Instead, what we’re currently seeing are fights breaking out off-field because of the failure to control the on-field game, and the level of refereeing (or lack of...) is partially to blame.

Photo of the disputed goal  by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images