Palmeiras football director Anderson Barros held a press conference after the team’s 1-1 draw with Remo on Sunday. The club had a winning goal disallowed in stoppage time for handball, a decision that infuriated the club.
Before assistant coach João Martins spoke to the media, Barros requested the floor and read a section of the rulebook he claimed to have taken from the IFAB, the governing body for soccer laws.
According to IFAB, a goal is valid if the ball accidentally touches the hand or arm of an attacking player and then a teammate scores. The goal is legal and confirmed. To better understand the dynamics: when is a goal disallowed? If the player whose hand touched the ball scores immediately after the touch, even if accidental. When is a goal valid? An accidental touch at the start of the play is not an infringement if the ball then goes to another player who scores.
In the incident in question, during an aerial duel, the ball struck Flaco López’s hand and fell to Fuchs, who scored. The referee initially awarded the goal but was called to the VAR. After review, Rafael Klein disallowed the goal for handball, a decision Fuchs disagreed with based on his understanding of the rule.
“It’s very clear. If everyone watches the play, Remo’s defender heads the ball onto López’s hand, it falls to Fuchs, and it’s a goal. That would have been two more points for Palmeiras. I just ask: who will take responsibility for this? It’s the responsibility of the CBF, the refereeing board, Rodrigo Cintra, Péricles Bassols. We can no longer allow this to happen,” criticized the Palmeiras director.
Defender Bruno Fuchs, who scored the disallowed goal, echoed similar sentiments. For Barros, if there is doubt in refereeing, it’s better to take as much time as needed to get the decision right.
“We can no longer commit this kind of error. How are we going to recover the two points lost on the field? It’s a very delicate situation.”
The Palmeiras director also claimed the club has recently suffered unprecedented punishments from the STJD, such as a six-game ban for coach Abel Ferreira.
“We will not accept this kind of behavior. I’m not saying anything absurd—just stating facts and reading the rule. The refereeing today, especially the VAR, made a gross mistake and harmed Palmeiras, who would have won all three points in this match,” he said.
What the IFAB Rulebook Says – Rule 12, Page 114
Touching the ball with the hand or arm to clearly determine infringements: the upper boundary of the arm aligns with the bottom of the armpit. Not every touch of a player’s hand or arm to the ball constitutes an infringement.
However, a player commits an infringement if they:
– deliberately touch the ball with their hand or arm, e.g., moving the hand or arm toward the ball;
– touch the ball with their hand or arm when they have made their body unnaturally bigger. A player is considered to have made their body unnaturally bigger when the position of their hand or arm is not a consequence of the player’s body movement for that specific action or cannot be justified by that movement. By placing their hand or arm in such a position, the player takes the risk of the ball striking that part of their body and this being an infringement;
– score a goal against the opponent directly with their hand or arm, even if accidental, including by the attacking team’s goalkeeper;
– score a goal immediately after the ball touches their hand.
