The response to the same wrong judgment was completely different. The attitudes of the Premier League (PL) and the Korea K League Commissioner's Committee revealed stark differences.
The VAR decision controversy in the PL match between Fulham and Chelsea was quickly summarized as a 'wrong judgment' after the match. Howard Webb, Chairperson of the England Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), publicly apologized, saying, 'We did not follow the guidelines properly,' and imposed disciplinary action on the VAR official.
In contrast, the Korea Football Association (KFA) Commissioner's Committee escalated the controversy with an explanation blaming 'the machine' in a similar issue.
Fulham was penalized on the 30th of last month during an away match against Chelsea in the PL third round when Josh King's goal was disallowed. Referee Robert Jones pointed out a foul by Rodrigo Muniz during the attack after a VAR review, but there were subsequent claims that the possibility of a foul by Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah was greater. Eventually, the PGMOL acknowledged that the decision was wrong and held Michael Salisbury, the VAR official, accountable by excluding him from the next day's match.
Webb, the Chairperson, appeared directly in the official PL program and said, 'It was wrong to disallow a goal in an unclear situation. VAR should only intervene when there is clear evidence,' explaining that 'this case was a wrong judgment due to not following the guidelines properly.' He added, 'We must continue to learn and improve,' expressing a commitment to system enhancement.
In contrast, K League was completely different. Last month, in the K League 2 match between Jeonnam and Cheonan, Jeonnam's Min Jun-young's goal was disallowed after a VAR review. Even from the broadcast screen, it was onside, but the KFA Commissioner's Committee claimed in an official explanation that 'there was a technical issue with the VAR review screen.'
The conclusion reached after much deliberation was a mechanical defect. To make matters worse, when errors occur in VAR, the regulations state that the original judgment must be maintained, but the on-site officiating team ignored this and changed the decision.
Despite criticism, the KFA Commissioner's Committee did not issue any significant apology or responsible statement. Referee Chairperson Moon Jin-hee maintained a policy of restricting criticism of officials, stating they would only respond if clubs formally raised issues through official documents. However, it is reported that Jeonnam Club received no feedback even after making an official complaint.
Ultimately, the difference between the PL and K League was clear. While wrong judgments are unavoidable, it comes down to whether trust is restored or distrust is heightened in the aftermath.
[Photo] Provided by KFA/Association.
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