Referee uses mobile phone in VAR decision during FC Porto football match in Portugal

A top-tier football match in Porto, Portugal, took an unexpected turn when the referee used a mobile phone to contact the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) official, leading to a dramatic series of events.

In the 90th minute of the match, Porto were trailing against Arouca when the on-field referee, Miguel Nogueira, awarded the home side a penalty. However, Nogueira's decision was immediately called into question as the VAR official signalled for a review.

In a rather unusual twist, Nogueira attempted to communicate with the VAR official via his earpiece, but technical issues prevented any communication. 

With the game temporarily paused and the outcome hanging in the balance, Nogueira was handed a mobile phone to establish contact with the VAR team.

The referee went to check a potential penalty in the Porto game in Portugal, it seems VAR wasn’t working and the referee ended up on a mobile phone discussing the decision. pic.twitter.com/liad7vtEmi

— BRGoals (@GTVWorld) September 3, 2023

After further delays, and the bizarre spectacle of a referee using an iPhone during a match, Nogueira decided to overturn his initial penalty decision.

However, the excitement was far from over at Estádio do Dragão. In the 15th minute of added time, Porto was awarded another penalty, and this time, the decision stood.

While the visitors' goalkeeper Ignacio De Arruabarrena managed to save the penalty, Brazilian forward Evanilson managed to finally equalise in the 18th minute of added time, scoring from close range.

The match ultimately ended in a 1-1 draw, but the final score only tells part of the story of the thrilling late-game action.