© BELGIUM
The Professional Refereeing Department (PRD) will not transfer the complaint from RWD Molenbeek, about a disputed refereeing decision during the match at the end of January in the Jupiler Pro League on the field of KV Mechelen (3-1), to the Disciplinary Council for the Professional football. The Belgian Football Association (KBVB) reported this on Wednesday evening.
RWDM appealed to the PRD a few days after the defeat on the field of KV Mechelen. According to the Brussels club, “a significant refereeing error” occurred during the match, which affected the result. RWDM felt that it should have been awarded a penalty in the 69th minute after a handball by home player Geoffry Hairemans. But the PhD student was not awarded a penalty, even after VAR intervention. RWDM argued that the explanation it received from the referee about the phase of play in question “raised questions” and showed a “terrible lack” of knowledge of the rules of the game.
The Brussels club therefore wanted to have the result canceled and the match replayed. The PRD looked into the complaint but does not believe a referral to the Disciplinary Council for Professional Football is necessary. “Representatives of the clubs involved were heard, as was the referee involved,” the KBVB said in a statement. “After deliberation, the PRD has ruled that it concerns an assessment by the referee of a game fact. And that no mistake has been made in the application of the rules of the game. The case will therefore not be transferred to the Disciplinary Council for Professional Football.”
In its argument, RWDM referred as a precedent to the competition match at the end of December between RSC Anderlecht and KRC Genk, which must be played again. Initially, Genk was rejected by the PRD after a complaint about incorrectly applied rules, but on appeal the Disciplinary Council for Professional Football ruled in favor.