Real Madrid's VAR leak prompts Spanish FA to file complaint

The new week has seen the continuation of the aftermath of Sunday’s contentious match between Real Madrid and Almeria. It is because a VAR audio from two distinct events during the La Liga encounter went public without authorization.

Against last-place Almeria at home last weekend in the Spanish league, Real Madrid almost avoided a humiliating loss with the aid of VAR. The second half ended with three positive video evaluations for the hosts.

Then, they rallied for a 3-2 victory against the lone side in the league without a victory this season. Carlo Ancelotti’s men netted the winning goal nine minutes into stoppage time. Carvajal’s late goal from close range devastated the Almeria players and coaching staff. The thrilling come-from-behind win ensured Real Madrid only trails Girona by one point in the league table. Ancelotti’s side has a game in hand, though, which means

Internal discussions reach the public

Much controversy has surrounded referee Francisco Jose Hernandez Maeso and video assistant referee Alejandro Hernandez Hernandez. Together, they reversed many calls made on the pitch. That includes a handball penalty against Almeria defender Kaiky Fernandes.

In a different incident, VAR disallowed Sergio Arribas’ goal that temporarily gave Almeria a two-goal advantage. Meanwhile, they allowed Vinicus’ equalizer to stand after it was first disallowed for handball. The decisions left many fans scratching their heads about what happened in the VAR room.

After much controversy in Spain, journalist Gerard Romano released the video assistant referee talking around all three of the controversial judgments. A conversation between the two officials over Vinicius’ goal is evident in the audio.

The fact that this got out, however, is a huge issue for the Spanish Soccer Federation, or RFEF. Putting this kind of pressure on the officials has the potential to ruin the competition. RFEF referees are wondering how the Spanish journalist obtained the tape before making it public.

What did Spanish FA say about the Real Madrid VAR leak?

Since the officials did not review the play and declare any violation, they should have kept their VAR talks secret. They are strictly limiting any kind of publication to official reviews.

Thus, the Spanish FA has since launched an inquiry into the situation and the first leakers of the audio files. So, reporter Gerard Romero and his Jijantes FC platform, look to be the primary targets.

The probe is now over, and the RFEF has spoken out against the Real Madrid VAR leak. Adding to that, they have also revealed that the Spanish Civil Guard will be investigating the issue further.

“The Royal Spanish Football Federation has filed a complaint with the Guardia Civil on Tuesday after the publication of audios of the VAR system, of a totally professional and private scope, corresponding to the match between Real Madrid CF and UD Almeria in La Liga.

“The RFEF, which is keeping an internal investigation open after the aforementioned event, considers that it is extremely serious that this audio-visual material has been extracted and hopes that a response will be found as soon as possible to purge responsibilities.

“In addition, the necessary measures will be taken to ensure the security of all communications”, they said in a statement.

PHOTOS: IMAGO.