by Christian Pulisic expressed disappointment over the referee’s actions after the U.S. men’s national team lost the 2024 Copa América to Uruguay, stating that the officiating was not the reason for the team’s exit, despite criticism from Antonee Robinson and Gregg Berhalter.
USMNT players reacted negatively to referee Kevin Ortega, leading to a controversial video review that concluded Uruguay’s goal was onside, despite some evidence indicating otherwise.
U.S. captain Pulisic taunted Uruguayan head coach Ortega and encouraged celebrating with Uruguayan players after the game. After shaking an assistant referee’s hand, Ortega refused, confirming the incident postgame.
Pulisic appeared to be gesturing for the referee to celebrate with Uruguay, possibly explaining his refusal to shake hands. He and his teammates fought about numerous calls during a physical 90-minute match.
Why was Uruguay’s “offside goal” upheld by VAR?
Ronald Araújo headed the ball towards goal in the 66th minute to give Uruguay the lead. Matt Turner saved, and Mathías Olivera scored the rebound. However, replays showed Olivera was offside, potentially negating the goal.
South American soccer confederation CONMEBOL released audio and video footage from its Video Assistant Referee (VAR) room, revealing that South American defender Olivera’s knee was “on the same line” as U.S. defender Chris Richards’ left toes, leading to questions about the offside goal. Berhalter and his staff saw frames on the bench, questioning the rule.
CONMEBOL, unlike other international soccer teams, does not use semi-automated technology to determine player offside. Instead, they use a system where VARs manually and digitally pinpoint the player’s body point to draw virtual lines. This method seems imprecise by current standards.
Because of the unclear lines and difficulties in pinpointing the specific moment and frame at which a player kicks or heads the ball, CONMEBOL gives attacking players the benefit of the doubt, as an attacker is considered level and onside if their virtual line and defender’s line touch.
I saw sights that I had never seen before
In the first half, Richards was given a foul call by American referee Ortega, but he swiftly brought it down, giving Uruguay a free kick that almost resulted in a goal. Most U.S. players had halted due to yellow cards and referee permission, but Ortega’s book did not allow this.
Robinson and Pulisic expressed disbelief after a referee’s decision to let a free kick go while holding a yellow card, stating that the referee’s lack of knowledge and control in the game was embarrassing and that they hoped for a negative outcome.
Postgame, the individual expressed their shock and disbelief at the unprecedented events they witnessed, stating they were unsure of the nature of the situation and were unable to accept it.
Pulisic displayed frustration in the final moments of the match, yelling at Ortega and following him around after not receiving a call in stoppage time.
Robinson and his team emphasized that refereeing was not the cause of their group-stage flameout, stating that they didn’t blame the referees or linesmen for their performance, stating that despite their efforts and competitiveness, they weren’t good enough.
