VAR Review: Why Lukaku goal was ruled out for Openda handball - ESPN

We're analysing every VAR decision made throughout all 51 games at Euro 2024. On Monday, Belgium thought they had scored a crucial equaliser against Slovakia in the 86th minute, but the VAR had other ideas.

After each game, we take a look at the major incidents to examine and explain the process in terms of VAR protocol and the Laws of the Game.

What happened: Romelu Lukaku bagged an 86th-minute equaliser when he swept home a shot after good work by Loïs Openda, who cut the ball back for the striker to score. As soon as the ball hit the back of the net Slovakia defender Denis Vavro appealed for handball, and as the Belgium players raced away to celebrate, the VAR, Bastian Dankert of Germany, began a check.

VAR decision: Goal disallowed.

VAR review: It's the kind of handball in the buildup to a goal which you may not see in the Premier League, but is always likely to be penalised in UEFA competition which has a much stricter interpretation.

As Openda wasn't the goal scorer, the VAR and the referee, Turkey's Halil Umut Meler, have to judge it to be a deliberate act.

Openda was attempting to hold off Vavro and his fingers brushed the ball as his hand came down. Some will feel the movement of the arm is deliberate, but many others will believe it was the natural movement of his body and should never result in a VAR review.

It's not the kind of decision anyone really expected VAR to be making when it was introduced, but UEFA will insist on its guidelines being applied in these cases. But it does leave a bad taste.

UEFA also got the chance to show its new «snicko» feature for the first time, which uses a «heartbeat» line to prove the ball, which has a chip inside it, has been touched by the hand. It was expected this would be