Next Monday, Real Madrid will travel to the headquarters of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) in Las Rozas to listen to the audio of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) in relation to the controversial refereeing decisions that took place in the match against Espanyol. This private meeting was interrupted after the harsh statement issued by the Whites, which made clear the arbitrary manipulation that took place in their match.
Reasons for Real Madrid’s protest against VAR
The trigger that led Real Madrid to officially request access to the VAR audio was the untimely tackle by Carlos Romero on Kylian Mbappé in the 60th minute of the match played in Cornellá. For the Merengues, the tackle deserved a red card, but referee Muñiz Ruiz did not sanction it with a yellow card, nor did the VAR, led by Iglesias Villanueva, review it.
This fact, along with the fact that a goal scored by Vinicius Jr. was disallowed due to an earlier foul, prompted Real Madrid to write a letter to the RFEF and the High Sports Council (CSD) explaining their reasoning. In the letter, the white team pointed out that the refereeing system had been discredited and that all of this was constantly harming Real Madrid itself, as well as requesting the immediate delivery of the audio recordings as well as the conversations between the field referee and the VOR room.
RFEF’s response to Real Madrid’s statement
The RFEF reacted quickly and, although it did not refer directly to Real Madrid, issued a statement regretting the tone and accusations made by the Madrid club. However, the CTA (Referees’ Technical Committee) agreed to the request and opened the doors of its headquarters in Las Rozas to Real Madrid to listen to the VAR tapes next Monday.
The Federation wants to re-establish dialogue and transparency with the clubs, including Real Madrid, after this episode, which has further strained relations between the two sides. The RFEF has reiterated that listening to the audios at the federation’s headquarters is a common procedure for teams that have doubts about refereeing decisions, although there is no provision for sending such recordings.
VAR audios to settle controversy
The club, led by Florentino Pérez, hopes that listening to the VAR audios will help clear up the controversy surrounding the refereeing of the Espanyol-Real Madrid match. The Real Madrid delegation will be able to hear first-hand the words exchanged between Muñiz Ruiz and Iglesias Villanueva during the two incidents that caused the club’s unease: Carlos Romero’s tackle on Mbappé and the so-called disallowed goal by Vinicius Jr.
Whatever happens, the Whites are still calling for a complete overhaul of the refereeing system, arguing that the mistakes made are systematic and the result of structural problems. In their letter, the club had already described the current system as “flawed” and argued that the decisions against them had reached a level of “manipulation” that jeopardized the integrity of the competition.
With this meeting in Las Rozas, the RFEF hopes to “calm the waters” and “normalize relations”. What seems clear is that Real Madrid has warned that it will not stop and that it will continue to insist on the need to guarantee greater transparency and fairness in the use of VAR in Spanish football.
On Monday, Real Madrid acknowledged that this could be a key day, as the audio recordings could either satisfy Real Madrid’s demands or show how the club is becoming increasingly vocal in its determination to get what it considers to be unfair treatment from the refereeing establishment.