FIFA explains why Croatia's goal was disallowed

FIFA has issued an official explanation regarding the controversial decision to disallow Croatia's goal against Portugal in their World Cup Round of 32 match. The world governing body said sensor technology in the official match ball detected the faint touch of Igor Matanovic, which confirmed that Mario Pasalic was in an offside position at that moment, leading to the disallowal of Josko Gvardiol's goal.

The incident occurred in stoppage time, deep into the match. Croatia had created a golden opportunity to level the score. Ivan Perisic floated the ball into the box, where it touched Renato Veiga, then Matanovic, before reaching Pasalic. Pasalic then set up Gvardiol, who scored. Norwegian referee Espen Eskas initially awarded the goal, sparking celebrations among the Croatian players.

However, the decision was overturned after a VAR review. According to FIFA, the sensor in the Adidas Triconda match ball detected Matanovic's almost imperceptible touch. A graphic shown during the broadcast also confirmed a small spike at that moment, proving contact.

Once the touch was confirmed, the semi-automated offside technology analysed the positions of the players. It found that Pasalic was ahead of the last Portuguese defender when Matanovic touched the ball, leading to the offside decision. The VAR and the on-field referee jointly disallowed the goal.

FIFA said the 'Connected Ball Technology', developed jointly by Adidas and Kinexon, uses a motion sensor inside the ball that collects data hundreds of times per second, allowing even the faintest touch to be detected with precision. Its function is similar to the snickometer used in cricket to detect the faintest contact between bat and ball.

Croatian players reacted angrily to the decision. Coach Zlatko Dalic criticised the refereeing, saying, "VAR kills the emotion of football."

Portugal coach Roberto Martinez, however, defended the technology-based decision, saying, "This technology is used to eliminate all doubt in such situations."

FIFA's explanation has clarified its official position on the match's most debated decision. The governing body believes the correct decision was made through the combined use of ball sensors, semi-automated offside technology and VAR.