A referee has been suspended by the Egyptian FA after using his mobile phone to review footage of an in-game incident.
Mohamed Farouk was the man in the middle for a second-tier game between Suez SC and Al-Nasr, when the latter thought they had scored a late goal to make it 2-2. VAR was not in place for the game, but footage appeared to show the official looking back at the incident on a phone.
The goal was eventually disallowed, with Suez going on to add a third goal during time added on after the delay. Farouk has paid the price, though, with the country's FA confirming his ban.
Al-Nasr's board issued an official protest after the incident. "We were surprised by the position of the referee, Mohamed Farouk, by reviewing the shot via mobile phone, in a strange incident that did not occur in the history of Egyptian or international football," board member Ahmed Al-Ahmar said.
Al-Ahmar added that the relevant events were filmed and submitted to authorities. "Our complaint against the referee and for the interest of Egyptian football and to ensure the stability of the upcoming matches, and we await the decisions of the Football Association after we objected to the documents and evidence of doubt," the board member's statement continued.
Meanwhile, a statement from the Egyptian FA - as translated by The Athletic - revealed Farouk has been suspended for an "indefinite" period. “The committee decided to investigate the incident when Mohamed Farouk, the referee of the match, used a mobile phone to review one of the footage of the match’s events," the statement read.
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While the decision in Egypt is unrelated to VAR, the video system has come under scrutiny in the Premier league and beyond. One weekend in February brought a number of controversial decisions, prompting questions over VAR's future in the English top flight.
Premier League managers are reported to have encouraged players to resist celebrating goals, amid fears they could be chalked off. The 37 goals disallowed after VAR checks this term represents more than one per week, and Wolves boss Julen Lopetegui has been among the more vocal on the subject after his team found themselves on the receiving end of a number of decisions which upset the Spaniard.
"I'm not waiting for apologies, I want fairness," Lopetegui said after his team's recent defeat against Leeds which left them just three points above the Premier League's relegation zone. “The refereeing decisions since my appointment, it's incredible. I could make a book. Maybe when you have the same mistakes a lot of times against you, it's not balanced.”
