Mohamed Farouk, an Egyptian official, has been suspended for disallowing a goal in a league game by using a spectator's phone.
Last Friday, Al-Nasr thought they had scored a late equalizer against Suez in the second division. In Egypt's second division, there is no video assistant referee (VAR), but Farouk used his phone to watch a replay after the home team claimed there was a handball.The goal was then ruled out by Farouk.
Vitor Pereira, who took over for Mark Clattenburg as head of the Egyptian Referees Committee earlier this month, decided to suspend the entire refereeing staff for an "indefinite period," according to a statement released by the Egyptian Football Association.
The Egyptian Football Association added, "The committee decided to investigate the incident when Mohamed Farouk, the match referee, used a mobile phone to review footage of the match's events."
In the 15 minutes of extra time remaining, Suez secured a 3-1 victory with their third goal, which came shortly after the goal that was wrongfully awarded.
Under the protection of the police, Farouk left the field amid protests from Al-Nasr players and officials, who have threatened to sue the referee for breaking the rules.
Al-Nasr thought they had scored a late equalizer, but the hosts protested because of a handball, and the referee decided to rule it out after spending a long time reviewing the video on the phone.
According to a statement released by the Egyptian Football Association, Portuguese Vitor Pereira, who took over for Englishman Mark Clattenburg as head of the Referees Committee, made the decision to suspend the entire staff of referees for an "indefinite period." The Egyptian Football Association continued, "The Committee decided to investigate the incident when Mohamed Farouk, the match referee, used a mobile phone to review one of the footage of the match's events."
Suez won the game 3-1 after an additional 15 minutes of stoppage time. Farouk left the field with police protection amid protests from Al-Nasr players and officials, who threatened to deal with the referee for breaking the rules.