In the latest episode of its official review show Tiempo de Revisión, released on September 8, the Technical Committee of Referees (CTA) of the Royal Spanish Football Federation reviewed the controversial penalty from the clash between Real Betis and Real Madrid, concluding that the decision by the match referee and the VAR not to order a retake was correct.
The controversy occurred in the 94th minute of the match. Kylian Mbappé took a penalty that was parried by Real Betis goalkeeper Álvaro Valles, after which Marc Bartra reacted ahead of Mbappé to clear the rebound. Real Madrid contended that Bartra had encroached into the penalty area before Mbappé made contact with the ball, arguing that the penalty should have been retaken.
Following the match, José Mourinho also publicly questioned the VAR's handling of the situation, remarking that if the VAR was unfamiliar with the relevant rules, the official in charge should not continue officiating; and if the rules were understood yet a retake was still not ordered, the issue was even more serious.
In its official breakdown, the CTA examined Bartra's positioning frame by frame. The footage demonstrated that at the exact moment Mbappé struck the ball, Bartra had one foot in the air while his other foot remained in contact with the ground.
Under IFAB regulations, only when a player's entire body is completely airborne at the moment a penalty kick is taken must their position be evaluated based on the vertical projection of their feet onto the ground. The CTA emphasized that being “airborne” specifically requires the entire body to have fully left the ground.
Because Bartra still had one foot planted on the turf, the projection rule governing airborne players could not be applied. Through the footage, the CTA confirmed that his grounded foot had neither encroached into the penalty area nor stepped on the penalty arc.
The referee committee ultimately concluded: "Bartra did not commit any infringement." Consequently, allowing play to proceed following Mbappé's missed penalty was deemed the correct decision, and the officiating by match referee Alejandro Hernández Hernández alongside VAR referee Javier Iglesias Villanueva was completely sound.
