PGMOL 'refute claims chiefs pressured Sky to cover up VAR blunder'

10/06/2023 Soccer

PGMOL ‘refute Ben Foster’s bizarre claims that refereeing chiefs pressured Sky Sports to cover up VAR blunder’ during Liverpool’s defeat at Spurs… after ex-keeper made allegations the broadcaster was ‘in bed’ with officials

  • Ben Foster claimed Sky were ‘in bed’ with VAR chiefs after Liverpool lost to Spurs
  • The PGMOL hit back at allegations they pressure Sky to cover up huge blunder
  • Listen to the latest episode of Mail Sport’s podcast ‘It’s All Kicking Off’ 

The PGMOL have strongly refuted claims from ex-Premier League goalkeeper Ben Foster that refereeing chiefs pressured Sky Sports to cover up the major VAR blunder during Liverpool’s controversial 2-1 loss to Tottenham last weekend.

The fallout from the game has dragged on this week after the refereeing group admitted a ‘significant human error’ was made that saw VAR Darren England and assistant Dan Cook stood down after failing to award Luis Diaz’s first half goal, despite being clearly onside. 

The Colombian forward’s goal was ruled as offside by the on-pitch officials – and a leaked audio from inside the VAR studio revealed that England had told referee Simon Hooper ‘check complete’ having mistakenly believed that the goal was given. 

The fury over the highly-debated incident has seen Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp call for a replay of the game, which Spurs won in the last minute thanks to a Joel Matip own goal, while Liverpool also saw two men sent off in contentious circumstances.

Giving his take on the Diaz incident, former Man United and Wrexham keeper Foster alleged there was a cover-up and claimed Sky had been pressured by the PGMOL to not show further replays of the offside. 


The PGMOL – led by Howard Webb (L) have refuted bizarre claims by Ben Foster (R) that refereeing chiefs pressured Sky Sports into covering up their high-profile VAR blunder

VAR ruled out a Liverpool goal at Tottenham, despite replays clearly showing Luis Diaz was being played onside by Cristian Romero


A mix-up from Darren England (left) and VAR assistant Dan Cook (right) saw them mistakenly believe the goal was given by the on-field referee 

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‘They didn’t show one replay for the rest of the half and then at half time they didn’t talk about it – not once – until ten seconds before the second half,’ Foster claimed on his podcast The Cycling GK. 

‘That tells me Sky are in bed with the people at VAR and [the PGMOL]. Because they must have got straight on the phone and said “do not highlight the fact that we’ve cocked up here, do not show it, do not bad-mouth us, do not nothing”. 

‘I guarantee you that’s what’s happened. So that’s why Sky were under direct orders to not say a single word about it.’

However, the PGMOL have refuted the claims from Foster and dismissed his comments as ‘unfounded and completely untrue’, according to the Independent.

The report adds that only the Premier League’s match centre communicates information to broadcasters and not the PGMOL, with the group having no say in what TV bosses decide to air. 

The Reds were incensed after the game with Jurgen Klopp calling for the game to be replayed

Mail Sport have reached out to Sky Sports for comment 

The PGMOL is led by chief Howard Webb, who is set to break his silence on the incident next week, as reported by Mail Sport. 

He will speak at the second edition of Match Officials: Mic’d Up, with the group so far not providing any officials for an interview since the debacle. 

It came after the VAR audio showed the extent of the huge mistake in a discussion that has dominated football this week. 

After play restarted following Diaz’s disallowed goal, the VAR operator is heard to say, ‘Wait, wait, wait, wait, the on-field decision was offside, are you happy with this? That’s wrong that, Daz (Darren England, VAR)’, to which England sighs and swears, shouting ‘Oh f***’.

Oli Kohout, the VAR Hub Operations Executive, called in to order officials to delay the game and right their wrong, but England bluntly replied, ‘Can’t do anything’ and the game restarted with a Tottenham free-kick. ‘I can’t do anything… (bleeped-out expletives),’ England continued.

IT’S ALL KICKING OFF! 

It’s All Kicking Off is an exciting new podcast from Mail Sport that promises a different take on Premier League football, launching with a preview show today and every week this season.

It is available on MailOnline, Mail+, YouTube , Apple Music and Spotify

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