06/24/2024
The 2-1 victory of the Colombian national team against Paraguay warmed the hearts of the entire country and made 10 James Rodríguez the star of the game. An exciting match with some curious facts for some, such as the moment in which the referee Argentine Darío Herrera connected his microphone to the speakers of the NRG stadium in Houston, Texas.
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The referee’s action when speaking over the loudspeakers for the entire stadium caught the attention of those who were there, but also of those who followed the television broadcast, when he decided to announce that the defensive play against the player Yerry Mina that he was about to score a goal, was not a reason for a penalty in favor of Colombia, which would have widened the goal difference in moments of great intensity between both teams. “No foul, no penalty,” the man declared.
It is the first time that this has happened in a Conmebol match. However, this mechanism has already been used in other football matches, such as in the duel between Al-Ahly and Auckland City and in the match between Flamengo and Al Hilal in the semi-final of the 2022 Club World Cup that was played in 2023.
This strategy has also been used in other sports such as American football and basketball, since it allows both the fan and the athlete to understand in real time the reason why a decision is made.
This is an action implemented by Fifa, which generally takes advantage of the Club World Cup to test innovations in judging, as was the case of the VAR, which was used for the first time in 2016 in the tournament in which Atlético Nacional participated.
Now, This tactic debuted in the 2024 Copa América and for many, it was the first time to witness these types of strategies to improve communication between fans and match decision makers.
In addition to this fact, which will become more and more constant in the football scene, referee Darío Herrera was criticized for not pausing the match after the fans threw a red flare and for retracting the penalty in favor of Colombia.
