Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], June 12 (ANI): The All India Football Federation (AIFF) President Kalyan Chaubey said India faced defeat against Qatar in FIFA 2026 and AFC Asian Cup 2027 Preliminary Joint Qualification Round 2 because of "wrong decision made by the referee" and there was a huge mistake in the "refereeing" during the match.
India's campaign in the qualification for FIFA World Cup 2026 ended on a controversial note after Qatar clinched a 2-1 win in the World Cup Qualifier Second Round Group A clash at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha on Tuesday. However, the match garnered many highlights because Qatar was given a goal despite the ball travelling out of the field of play.
India led the game till the 72nd minute of the game but Qatar levelled the game following a controversial equaliser. Yousef Aymen found the back of the net after the ball had gone out of play. They scored another goal in the final minutes of the game to clinch a 2-1 victory and end Igor Stimac's side run in the Qualification race.
On the controversial goal and defeat, Chaubey said India was on the verge of scripting history but there was a "huge mistake in the refereeing" and they have a complaint about the whole incident to the AFC head of referees and the AFC head of competition and the match commissioner under the International Football Association Board.
AIFF has, after consultation with its Chief Refereeing Officer, decided to write to the FIFA Head of Qualifiers, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Head of Referees, the AFC Head of Competitions, and the Match Commissioner for the game, requesting them to look into the "grave supervision error" caused during the game that cost India a place in the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers Round 3.
"It was a wrong decision made by the referee and India was to face defeat because of that decision. India was on the verge of scripting history. For the first time, India was in the situation of qualifying for the 3rd round of the FIFA World Cup...There has been a huge mistake in the refereeing. We all saw that the ball was out of the goal line. Why couldn't the referee or the side referee (linesman) see it? It is something that needs to be investigated. Yesterday, we had a word with our chief referee, we complained to the FIFA head of qualifiers, the AFC head of referees and the AFC head of competition and the match commissioner under the International Football Association Board (IFAB)," Chaubey told ANI.
The AIFF President said they are hopeful of getting justice and "unfortunately" the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) was not there for them to challenge this decision yesterday.
"We are hopeful of getting justice. It is unfortunate for us that the VAR (Video Assistant Referee) system was not there for us. I was told that from the third round onwards VAR system is there...We could have easily challenged this decision yesterday, had there been VAR...We are hopeful of getting feedback and if we get sporting compensation according to the law, it should be discussed as to what we will get..." he added.
Earlier, on the controversial goal and defeat, AIFF issued a statement, saying while defeats and victories are part of the sport, one of the goals scored by Qatar left a "few questions unanswered".
"The defeat against Qatar in the FIFA 2026 and AFC Asian Cup 2027 Preliminary Joint Qualification Round 2 concluding match on Tuesday night was a huge disappointment for the entire Indian football fraternity. While victory and defeat are a part and parcel of the game, and we have learned to accept it gracefully, one of the two goals scored against India yesterday night left a few questions unanswered," said the statement. (ANI)
