In the third round of the National High School Soccer Championship, top contender Higashi Fukuoka led 2-1 but faced a controversial call in second-half stoppage time. Ultimately, Higashi Fukuoka lost in a penalty shootout and failed to advance to the quarterfinals.
Controversial call in high school soccer?
Higashi Fukuoka led 2-1, but in the dying moments of the match, Kōkoku connected a long throw-in to the front of the goal, and forward Sasaginshi scored the equalizer. However, Higashi Fukuoka vehemently protested that it was offside. Despite this, the call stood.
Higashi Fukuoka High School suffered a heartbreaking defeat in a penalty shootout.
The match went to a penalty shootout tied at 2-2. Ultimately, they lost 4-5 and failed to reach the quarterfinals. This decision significantly influenced the outcome of the match, causing controversy.
Numerous comments regarding the decision have been posted on social media.
『The World’s Easiest-to-Understand Offside Rule』
『It’s so unfair for the players to get called like that—it’s their final tournament as third-year students…』
『Giving them a chance to retract a bad call might actually protect the referee, right?』
『It’s really bad when referees ruin the game』
Critical comments about the decision were overwhelmingly in the majority, and there were also voices calling for the introduction of VAR.
This debate is likely to continue.
