England beats Norway 2-1 in controversial World Cup quarterfinal

England defeated Norway 2-1 in extra time to reach the World Cup semifinals, but the match was marred by two controversial VAR decisions that sparked outrage in Norway. Source: infobae, emolcl

What happened

• Norway took the lead in the 36th minute via Andreas Schjelderup. Source: infobae
• Jude Bellingham equalized for England in first-half stoppage time (45+2) and scored the winner in the 93rd minute. Source: infobae, elnacionalve
• Norway had a goal disallowed in the 57th minute for a push by Erling Haaland. Source: infobae

The controversies

The first controversy involved the ball possibly hitting the overhead camera cable before England's equalizer. FIFA later stated that the ball's sensors showed no evidence of contact, so the goal stood. Source: elnacionalve, infobae However, many in Norway felt the goal should have been disallowed. Commentator Kristoffer Lokberg called it "one of the greatest scandals in World Cup history." Source: infobae Ex-player Erik Mykland said "the technology that was supposed to help us is destroying us." Source: emolcl

The second controversy was the disallowed goal for Norway. VAR spotted Haaland pushing Elliot Anderson before the corner, and referee Clément Turpin reversed his initial decision, following a new IFAB rule. Haaland himself protested: "If that's a foul, then I should get one in almost every duel." Source: infobae His father, Alfie Haaland, wrote on X: "Saved by the referee... I feel we were robbed today." Source: infobae, emolcl

Reactions

Coach Ståle Solbakken said "There are things that happened today that are a bit strange, but that's part of football." Source: emolcl The controversial decisions dominated post-match coverage in Scandinavia. Source: infobae