Jude Bellingham’s equaliser against Norway has sparked fierce debate after footage suggested the ball struck a camera cable before England scored.
Former Premier League referee Mark Clattenberg has stated the goal should not have stood, citing the sport’s rules on outside interference.
The incident occurred during a pulsating World Cup quarter-final in Miami, a game already laden with controversy before the cable moment emerged.
Norway goalkeeper Orjan Nyland played a goal kick that appeared to strike the overhead camera cable, sending the ball rebounding sharply back down toward the players.
England collected possession from the rebound, and just two passes later Bellingham had slotted home to cancel out Andreas Schjelderup’s opener for Norway.
Norway head coach Stale Solbakken was visibly furious after the goal stood, with Nyland seen pointing toward the cable to signal what he believed had happened.
FOX Sports captured the incident from a unique angle, with host Rebecca Lowe addressing the controversy directly during their broadcast coverage.
Lowe said: “From Norway’s goal kick the ball is actually touched by the camera cable above the stadium, and drops down very quickly. It comes back to England, and two passes later it’s in the back of the net.”
Lowe added: “The goalkeeper pointing up saying it touched that cable. The rule, we have spoken to our rules expert Mark Clattenberg, and he has said if the ball touches any outside object the whistle should go.”
IFAB regulations state that “if the object or agent interferes with play, the referee must stop play” and that play is restarted with a dropped ball at the point of contact.
FIFA responded to the uproar by releasing a statement to Sky Sports insisting there was no contact between the ball and the wire.
FIFA’s statement read: “We have checked the data from the adidas Connected Ball and it shows no peak on the graph from the heartbeat sensor.”
The quarter-final had already seen Norway have a goal disallowed by VAR, while England also had a penalty overturned after Djed Spence went down in the box.
Despite FIFA’s firm stance, the controversy is unlikely to fade quickly, with Clattenberg’s expert opinion directly contradicting the governing body’s official position.
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