We might already be gearing up for the next Premier League season, with the fixtures for the 2025-26 campaign having been released last week. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t still time to look back at the controversy of VAR in 2024-25.

The video assistant was never too far from the headlines — either for failing to intervene, or for overstepping the mark.

But which clubs got the worst of the VAR mistakes? Which teams benefited? Were Arsenal fans right to think they don’t get decisions?

We take a look at where the season went wrong, particularly around serious foul-play incidents, with four red cards overturned on appeal to the Football Association.

We’ll also take a look at where the officials got things right, showing who were statistically the best referees and VARs across the season … and those who must improve.

Now that the dust has settled, ESPN can reveal the full list of the 18 VAR errors (yes, just 18) recorded by the Premier League’s Key Match Incidents Panel, and how it voted.

If there were only 18 mistakes this season, VAR must be getting better, right? Right?

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Revealed: Every official VAR mistake in the Premier League in 2024-25

Players, managers and fans moaned about VAR decisions all season. Yet every time one club complains, there’s another one delighted that the VAR got involved (not that we hear about this).

Sometimes, however, the referees and the VAR both get it wrong — especially this season when it came to serious foul play. Brentford’s Christian Nørgaard and AFC Bournemouth’s Evanilson both received VAR red cards that were overturned on appeal.

Then there were Arsenal’s Myles Lewis-Skelly and Bruno Fernandes of Manchester United, who were sent off by the referee, but the video referee failed to step in. And Everton defender James Tarkowski also somehow escaped a red card after his horror challenge on Liverpool’s Alexis Mac Allister.

Who decides a mistake has been made?

The Premier League set up KMI panel at the start of the 2022-23 season with the intention of giving an arm’s-length assessment.

Prior to 2022, it was Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), the organization in charge of refereeing, that would collate the stats. Clubs argued that the figures were skewed in favor of the officials, so the KMI panel was born.

The panel features five members: three former players and/or coaches, one representative for the Premier League and one for PGMOL. Each member has one vote across the KMIs in two categories: the referee’s original decision and whether the VAR should intervene. A simple majority is required for right or wrong, so the ex-players can always carry the vote.

Clubs are issued a document after each game week that charts the voting and reasons behind it. It’s just another subjective opinion by committee, though, and referees and clubs will still disagree.

Winners and losers

Brentford suffered the most errors (3), two coming in games where they didn’t take maximum points. In November, Nørgaard got that red card in the first half at Everton; then in December, Brighton & Hove Albion’s João Pedro should have been sent off for violent conduct, with both matches finishing goalless. The Bees were also denied a spot kick at Ipswich, though that was a game they won.

Bournemouth are next worse off and, as we’ll see as we go through the various categories, boss Andoni Iraola has every right to be the most annoyed with VAR. His team tops almost every other category, including key ones such as interventions against and, crucially, goals disallowed. While Brentford might have suffered more errors, Bournemouth’s were clearly impactful.

Indeed, Bournemouth suffered the first mistake of the season on the opening weekend when Dango Ouattara had a stoppage-time winner against Newcastle disallowed for handball. And in April, Evanilson got that incorrect VAR red card. The Cherries were ahead when the striker was dismissed, and went on to draw 1-1.

But Bournemouth weren’t the only team to suffer in added time, with Manchester United conceding an incorrect penalty at West Ham that led to a 2-1 defeat.

In total, Brighton and Everton benefited the most, each having three errors go their way.

Everton had the Nørgaard red card, plus a goal against Wolves that should have been disallowed. But those decisions were of limited benefit, as Everton thrashed Wolves and lost the Merseyside derby with 11 men.

Brighton escaped red cards against West Ham and Brentford (they drew both fixtures) and should have conceded a spot kick against Villa (in a game they lost.)

Here’s a list of all 18 errors, including the comments from the KMI panel.

1. Bournemouth 1-1 Newcastle, Aug. 25
Dango Ouattara goal disallowed for handball (90+2′)
KMI panel referee vote: 5-0
KMI panel VAR vote: 0-5

Bournemouth scored what would have been a late winner, but the VAR stepped in to disallow it for handball by the goal scorer. (Watch here)

What the KMI panel said: “The panel were unanimous in agreeing that the goal was correctly awarded on-field, and that there was no conclusive evidence readily available of an accidental handball by the attacker, that would be required for the VAR to intervene.”

2. Man United 0-3 Tottenham, Sept. 29
Serious foul play, red card to Bruno Fernandes (41′)
KMI panel referee vote: 0-5
KMI panel VAR vote: 0-5

Man United trailed 1-0 when captain Fernandes was sent off after he made a challenge on James Maddison in which he led with his studs (but didn’t make contact with them). The VAR didn’t intervene to downgrade the card to a yellow. The red card was overturned after an appeal to the FA. (Watch here)

What the KMI panel said: “Fernandes is reaching, the contact is high but certainly not excessive force or endangering the safety. The evidence is also there for a VAR intervention.”

3. West Ham 2-1 Man United, Oct. 27
Penalty awarded for a foul by Matthijs de Ligt on Danny Ings (90+2′)
KMI panel referee vote: 5-0
KMI panel VAR vote: 0-5

The VAR advised that West Ham should be given a spot kick in added time. It was scored by Jarrod Bowen, which earned the home side a 2-1 win. The panel voted 5-0 that the overturn was a mistake. And United manager Erik ten Hag was sacked the following morning. (Watch here)

What the KMI panel said: “A collision between two players challenging for a loose ball, the referee is in a great position and decides to play on. The panel were unanimous in their support of the referee’s original call of no penalty.”

4. Everton 0-0 Brentford, Nov. 23
Christian Nørgaard sent off for serious foul play (39′)
KMI panel referee vote: 3-2
KMI panel VAR vote: 2-3

The referee didn’t give a free kick against the Brentford captain after he made contact with a knee of Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford when sliding to meet a cross. The VAR sent the referee to the monitor and advised a red card. The red card was overturned on appeal. This was a split 3-2 vote. (Watch here)

What the KMI panel said: “The panel were split (3:2), with the majority deeming the on-field decision correct as ‘both players are committed to normal footballing actions.’ Two panelists deemed the on-field decision incorrect as ‘whilst this was a challenge for the ball, there was a high, full and forceful contact with the studs.'”

5. Aston Villa 2-2 Crystal Palace, Nov. 23
DOGSO, red card not given to Ian Maatsen (65′)
KMI panel referee vote: 1-4
KMI panel VAR vote: 2-3

Ismaïla Sarr was through on goal when pulled down by Aston Villa defender Maatsen. The referee and the VAR felt there was a covering player, with Maatsen cautioned. Palace led 2-1 at the time and the game ended 2-2.

What the KMI panel said: “Sarr is in control, touches the ball towards the goal and would have had an obvious opportunity to have a shot on goal. The panel (3:2) felt the VAR should have intervened for a clear and obvious error.”

6. Everton 4-0 Wolves, Dec. 4
Abdoulaye Doucouré offside offense on goal (72′)
KMI panel referee vote: 1-4
KMI panel VAR vote: 1-4

Everton had already seen one goal disallowed by the VAR in the 16th minute for the exact same offside offense, blocking an opponent by Orel Mangala. When Doucouré did the same thing in the 72nd minute, which led to Craig Dawson scoring an own goal to put Everton 4-0 up, there was no intervention. (Watch here)

What the KMI panel said: “The offside attacker’s actions clearly impact the defender’s ability to challenge for or play the ball. The panel concluded that both the on-field decision (4:1) and the VAR’s decision not to intervene (4:1) was incorrect.”

7. Nottingham Forest 2-1 Aston Villa, Dec. 14
Penalty not awarded. Foul by Elliot Anderson (34′)
KMI panel referee vote: 2-3
KMI panel VAR vote: 2-3

The majority of the KMI panel felt that the holding offense by Anderson on Morgan Rogers just crossed the threshold for a VAR penalty when it was goalless. However, it also said that a pitchside monitor review would have enabled the referee to assess earlier holding by Rogers. (Watch here)

What the KMI panel said: “Anderson grabs hold of Rogers outside of the area but this continues inside. The holding offense is clear.”

8. West Ham 1-1 Brighton, Dec. 21
Serious foul play, red card not given to Pervis Estupiñán (84′)
KMI panel referee vote: 1-4
KMI panel VAR vote: 1-4

Estupiñán was cautioned for a foul on Max Kilman, with the score 1-1, and the VAR elected against a review for a red card.

What the KMI panel said: “The action of Estupinian has speed, force, intensity and endangers the safety of the opponent.”

9. Brighton 0-0 Brentford, Dec. 27
Violent conduct, red card not given to João Pedro (75′)
KMI panel referee vote: 0-5
KMI panel VAR vote: 0-5

João Pedro was pulled back by Yehor Yarmoliuk, then the Brighton forward threw his elbow back. João Pedro didn’t make contact, but it was done so with force — yet the VAR decided this wasn’t sufficient for a red card for violent conduct. (Watch here)

Coincidentally, Pedro was sent off for violent conduct in the return fixture.

What the KMI panel said: “A clear attempt to strike Yarmoliuk by João Pedro. No contact is needed as per the Laws of the Game for this clear action to result in a red card for violent conduct. There is no place in football for actions like this.”

10. West Ham 0-5 Liverpool, Dec. 29
Penalty not awarded. Foul by Alexis Mac Allister (35′)
KMI panel referee vote: 2-3
KMI panel VAR vote: 2-3

This was an off-the-ball tussle between Carlos Soler and Mac Allister, when West Ham United trailed 1-0. Mohammed Kudus delivered a cross from the right, which was diverted into the arms of goalkeeper Alphonse Areola by Lucas Paquetá at the near post. In the center of the box, Soler (who had no chance of challenging for the ball) went down under pressure from Mac Allister. (Watch here)

What the KMI panel said: “The panel were split (3:2), with the majority deeming the on-field decision incorrect as ‘he [Mac Allister] turns his back on the ball, his only motivation is to impede the attacker [Soler] and throws him to the floor.’ The opposing view was that ‘there’s initial engagement from both players and it doesn’t have a clear impact on play.'”

11. Ipswich 0-2 Brighton, Jan. 19
Penalty not awarded. Foul by Wes Burns (11′)
KMI panel referee vote: 0-5
KMI panel VAR vote: 1-4

Burns was holding onto Jan Paul van Hecke, preventing the Brighton player from getting to the ball. It was 0-0 at the time, with Brighton going on to pick up the three points.

What the KMI panel said: “The body position and contact, initiated by Burns, should have been penalized. Van Hecke has to engage as he tries to get past the defender. No attempt is made to look at the ball by Burns, let alone play it.”

12. Nottingham Forest 3-2 Southampton, Jan. 19
Nikola Milenkovic disallowed for offside against Chris Wood (64′)
KMI panel referee vote: 4-1
KMI panel VAR vote: 1-4

Wood had come back to challenge for the ball from an offside position, yet there was no impact on an opponent and the goal should have stood. The panel voted 4-1 it was a wrong intervention. Forest led 3-1 at the time. (watch here)

What the KMI panel said: “Wood comes from an offside position ‘but doesn’t impact any opponent’s ability to play or challenge for the ball.’ One panelist felt ‘Wood impacts the ability of a defender; specifically their decision of which space to defend.'”

13. Wolves 0-1 Arsenal, Jan. 25
Serious foul play, red card given to Myles Lewis-Skelly (43′)
KMI panel referee vote: 0-5
KMI panel VAR vote: 1-4

One of the most controversial decisions of the season, Lewis-Skelly’s red card for a trip on Matt Doherty just outside the attacking penalty area was upheld on VAR review. It was goalless at the time of the dismissal, with the Gunners grabbing a winner in the 74th minute after Wolves had also been reduced to 10 men. (watch here)

What the KMI panel said: “A cynical trip to stop a counter-attack. The initial point of contact is high on the shin, but not forceful and with the side of the boot. This initial contact moves down quickly to the foot, meaning this foul should only result in a yellow card for a reckless challenge.”

14. Brighton 0-3 Aston Villa, April 2
Penalty not awarded. Foul by Jack Hinshelwood (36′)
KMI panel referee vote: 0-5
KMI panel VAR vote: 0-5

The game was goalless in the first half when Jacob Ramsey tried to move past Hinshelwood, with the Brighton player sticking out a leg and clearly committing a foul. But the referee did nothing and VAR did not overturn the call. (watch here)

What the KMI panel said: “A clear trip and careless foul.”

15. Liverpool 1-0 Everton, April 2
Serious foul play, red card not given to James Tarkowski (11′)
KMI panel referee vote: 0-5
KMI panel VAR vote: 0-5

Tarkowski came out to make a challenge/clearance and caught Liverpool midfielder Mac Allister high on the shin with force. Everton should have been reduced to 10 men early in the game, though Liverpool still went on to win the match. (watch here)

What the KMI panel said: “The clear dangerous nature of the challenge is not mitigated by Tarkowski winning the ball first. A clear example of endangering the safety of an opponent.”

16. Fulham 3-2 Liverpool, April 6
Penalty not awarded. Foul by Caoimhín Kelleher (5′)
KMI panel referee vote: 1-4
KMI panel VAR vote: 1-4

The Liverpool goalkeeper had rushed out to make himself big as Andreas Pereira helped the ball across the area. Kelleher was late and took out the Fulham attacker, though the home side went on to pick up the three points anyway. (watch here)

What the KMI panel said: “Kelleher is nowhere near the ball, wipes out Pereira and the contact is significant,’ though one panelist felt ‘despite contact, it doesn’t impact Pereira’s ability to play the ball.”

17. Bournemouth 1-1 Man United, April 27
Evanilson sent off for serious foul play (68′)
KMI panel referee vote: 5-0
KMI panel VAR vote: 0-5

The VAR advised the referee that Evanilson had made a two-footed challenge on Noussair Mazraoui, with the striker sent off on review. The panel vote was 5-0, with the red card also overturned on appeal. (watch here)

What the KMI panel said: “Evanilson slips and Mazraoui is turning into the challenge which makes it look much worse’ and there was ‘no evidence of the referee’s call being a clear and obvious error.”

18. Ipswich 0-1 Brentford, May 10
Penalty not awarded. Foul by Axel Tuanzebe (35′)
KMI panel referee vote: 1-4
KMI panel VAR vote: 1-4

The game had seen constant problems with holding inside the area, with this clearly crossing the line. After the players had separated, the Ipswich Town defender grabbed Nathan Collins around the waist and pulled him to the ground. Brentford had already scored the only goal of the game at this point. (watch here)

What the KMI panel said: “Tuanzebe is not looking at the ball, Collins tries to break free and Tuanzebe holds him with both arms and impacts his movement. The holding was not mutual.”

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How did the mistakes affect clubs?

Counting up the 18 errors is one thing, but considering how they have impacted clubs is what really matters. We’ve rolled these into four categories.

No effect on the outcome (8)

In eight of the errors, the mistake was against the club that won the game.

Likely no effect on the outcome (5)

This category is for decisions which either came late in the game and didn’t directly impact the score, or when the game state was clear.

Fernandes’ dismissal came when Man United were being outplayed, and the red cards which should have been shown to Brighton’s Estupiñán and Pedro came late. There’s also the penalty that should have been given to West Ham vs. Liverpool when they trailed 1-0, but Arne Slot’s side went on to win 5-0.

Also, Villa should have been given a spot kick at Forest when the score was 0-0, but Villa did go on to score the first goal of the game. Also, the spot kick might not have been awarded due to an earlier infringement.

Possible effect on the outcome (3)

These are the decisions where the game was finely poised, and it may have gone on a different course but for the error.

Nørgaard’s red card for Brentford at Everton came in the first half when the score was goalless, while Crystal Palace led away to Aston Villa in the 65th minute when Maatsen should have been dismissed. Bournemouth were reduced to 10 men when leading against Man United, and conceded an equaliser.

Clear effect on the outcome (2)

Bournemouth’s disallowed injury-time winner vs. Newcastle, and the decisive penalty awarded to West Ham vs. Man United in injury time.

It seems it’s Bournemouth who were most impacted by decisions which could, or did, have had an effect on the result.

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Where the VARs are making errors

The stats show the biggest issue has been around those red-card offenses, as the VAR should have stepped in on eight occasions: four red cards for serious foul play should have been overturned, while two others should have been dismissed on review. There was one case of missed violent conduct, and one of DOGSO.

Last season, only three of the 31 errors were related to red cards.

Penalties have also been an issue, with seven spot-kick mistakes: six that should have been given, and one that should have been overturned.

In 2023-24, there were 14 penalty errors. So, the VAR is getting worse on red cards, but improving on penalties.

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They are the mistakes, but about total VAR decisions?

Forget the mistakes, what about the VAR interventions themselves? Which club suffered the most refereeing errors that needed to be corrected?

Across the 110 interventions, Newcastle United are way out in front with a net score of +9 (this is decisions, not points.) Eddie Howe’s team had 13 VAR calls in their favour — five more than any other club (Aston Villa, Brighton). They also lead the way, along with Chelsea, in total interventions, 17.

Within that tally, Newcastle were awarded four penalties — more than any other club, three of which were scored.

At the other end of the table, Bournemouth’s disillusionment with VAR is further compounded as they have suffered by far the biggest impact, with 11 decisions going against them and a net score of -7.

Chelsea aren’t far behind, with 10 VAR interventions to the opposition. Does that mean they get the rub of the green from referees more than they should? Maybe not, because Enzo Maresca has also had seven go in his favour, so the net score is -3.

Arsenal have had only one VAR call all season, and that was a factual overturn for a goal with Kai Havertz in an onside position against Leicester City.

Manchester City (4) have been remarkably inactive; Arsenal and Nottingham Forest (8) are the next lowest. Man City (1) have the least interventions against, three fewer than any other club.

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And if we just look at subjective interventions?

This is when you strip out the decisions like offside, handball before a goal is scored, and the ball being out of play.

We’re talking about penalties, red cards, and possible interference from an offside position.

Newcastle are still top, and they had six subjective calls go for them. But in this table Bournemouth move up to mid-table, and that tells us they’ve had a high number of factual calls go against them.

Southampton were the biggest sufferers this time, with a referee being sent to the screen six times in favour of the opposition.

Just as notable are the clubs who haven’t had a single decision go for them — i.e. not once all season was the referee sent to the monitor to give them a decision.

Only Arsenal and Nottingham Forest finished the campaign on zero subjective interventions. It’s not going to be the last time we hear of Arsenal in this article.

The Gunners haven’t been too active with decisions against (2), and Forest have suffered much more (4).

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Who has gained, and lost, the most goals?

The biggest gamechanger is, of course, a goal. And it should come as no surprise that the overall VAR stats are reflected here too, with Newcastle an incredible nine goals better off through VAR calls. The next best beneficiaries are Villa, on +4 goals.

The Magpies had six goals disallowed for the opposition — including the error which saved them from a late loss at Bournemouth — and they also gained four goals, through three spot kicks and an incorrect offside flag.

Who fared the worst on goals? Yep, it’s Bournemouth again. The Cherries have a net goals score of -6, having seven disallowed through VAR.

Leicester City top the list for goals awarded, with five added. Five clubs didn’t gain a single goal.

Ipswich Town suffered the highest goals against, with five going to their opponents on review.

And there’s another bad stat for Arsenal fans: the Gunners and Leicester were the only clubs not to have a single goal disallowed for the opposition.

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How is VAR doing year-on-year?

The stats tell us that VAR is going in the right direction … as far as the KMI Panel is concerned. Errors are down 42% compared to last season, from 31 to 18.

Writing about this topic on a weekly basis, it certainly feels like there have been fewer contentious incidents. The problem, of course, is that basic numbers don’t tell the whole story. The big headline makers — like the failure of VAR to intervene on Lewis-Skelly’s dismissal, or to send off Tarkowski — are more damaging than correct decisions. They stick in the memory for fans and outweigh any stats.

PGMOL’s biggest task — and it’s not an easy one — is to remove those highest-profile howlers, which cause all the reputational damage.

Even outside the errors, perception is everything. There are always going to be decisions — such as William Saliba’s DOGSO red card at Bournemouth, or Curtis Jones‘ dismissal at Tottenham in 2023-24 — which supporters can’t accept, even though they are correct in law and won’t appear in any list of errors.

When you have a review system which few people like or believe in, the stats don’t always paint the full picture.

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VAR is 6 years old; what does this tell us?

This season has seen fewer VAR interventions (109) than in any of the previous five campaigns. When you factor in that missed interventions are also down, that’s supposed to tell us that refereeing on the pitch and the video assistant are both improving — but try arguing that with your friends and see how far you get.

The falling number of handball penalties shows how the Premier League has moved to a more-lenient interpretation over the last two seasons. In fact, the rise and fall directly shows how the interpretation in the law was changed, and then rolled back.

The other numbers have remained within a similar range, though there is a clear outlier in 2021-22 when 47 goals were awarded through interventions.

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How do teams fare over the six years of VAR?

This table features the 13 teams who have been in the Premier League for all six seasons with the video assistant. It shows decisions, not points.

It will come as no surprise to Wolves fans that they have by far the worst net score: the total number of VAR interventions in their favour, minus those that have gone against them. Wolves are at minus-18 (38 decisions against them; 20 for), but at least they finished this season with a score of zero — so their position didn’t get any worse.

As these are overturns, it should tell us that there have been more incorrect refereeing decisions in Wolves games than in those involving any other team. However, these are just the basic numbers and don’t take into account what was correct or incorrect.

Arsenal, with a score of minus-6 this season, have started to catch Wolves — and not in a good way. That Chelsea are the next worst on minus-3 tells its own story.

And there’s Newcastle again, with their season of plus-9 moving them to the top of the six-season table, just ahead of Brighton.

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What about referee mistakes that didn’t reach the VAR threshold?

The other category for mistakes is “referee’s call,” a term which was introduced at the start of the season to effectively replace “clear and obvious.”

It’s supposed to give a greater understanding that the on-field decision carries most weight. It means there are some decisions judged to be incorrect on the field which won’t be a VAR error.

In 2024-25, 28 on-field errors were logged, compared to 33 in 2023-24. So a small improvement.

It’s 25, though, in direct comparison, as there have been three times the referee blew too earlier and prevented VAR from being able to award a possible goal.

Leicester are at the top of the table as beneficiaries of on-field errors, while Aston Villa and Chelsea have suffered the most.

Six clubs — including Chelsea, Arsenal (again) and Liverpool — didn’t have an on-field error go in their favour.

Here are those contentious situations.

When a penalty should have been awarded, but wasn’t (15)

1. Man City 4-1 Ipswich Town, Aug 24
Challenge by Savinho on Leif Davis (42′)

2. West Ham 0-3 Chelsea, Sept. 21
Challenge by Wesley Fofana on Crysencio Summerville (28′) (Watch here)

3. Southampton 2-3 Leicester, Oct. 19
Challenge by Jordan Ayew on Paul Onuachu (69′) (Watch here)

4. Bournemouth 2-0 Arsenal, Oct. 19
Challenge by Thomas Partey on Marcos Senesi (76′)

5. Ipswich 1-1 Leicester, Nov. 2
Challenge by Fatawu Issahaku on Conor Chaplin (76′) (Watch here)

6. Newcastle 0-2 West Ham, Nov. 25
Challenge by Konstantinos Mavropanos on Callum Wilson (72′)

7. Chelsea 2-1 Brentford, Dec. 15
Challenge by Yehor Yarmoliuk on Marc Cucurella (22′)

8. Everton 0-0 Chelsea, Dec. 22
Challenge by Jordan Pickford on Malo Gusto (31′) (Watch here)

9. Wolves 0-3 Nottingham Forest, Jan. 6
Handball by Rayan Aït-Nouri (33′)

10. Everton 4-0 Leicester, Feb. 1
Challenge by Jannik Vestergaard on Beto (34′)

11. Brentford 4-0 Leicester, Feb. 21
Challenge by Woyo Coulibaly on Kevin Schade (5′)

12. Ipswich 1-4 Tottenham, Feb. 22
Challenge by Dara O’Shea on Kevin Danso (64′)

13. Liverpool 2-0 Newcastle, Feb. 26
Challenge by Lewis Hall on Mohamed Salah (3′)

14. Brighton 2-2 Leicester, April 12
Challenge by Pervis Estupiñán on Kasey McAteer (19′)

15. Newcastle 3-0 Ipswich, April 26
Challenge by Liam Delap on Dan Burn (44′)

Penalty awarded that shouldn’t have been (3)

1. West Ham 1-2 Aston Villa, Aug. 17
Challenge by Matty Cash on Tomás Soucek (35′) (Watch here)

2. Everton 1-1 Arsenal, April 5
Challenge by Myles Lewis-Skelly on Jack Harrison (46′) (watch here)

3. Wolves 3-0 Leicester, April 26
Challenge by José Sá on Jamie Vardy (70′) (watch here)

Red card not shown that should have been (3)

1. Leicester 1-2 Chelsea, Nov. 23
Serious foul play challenge by Wilfred Ndidi on Cole Palmer (22′)

2. Aston Villa 3-2 Brentford, Dec. 4
DOGSO challenge by Ethan Pinnock on Ollie Watkins (25′) (Watch here)

3. Brentford 0-1 Aston Villa, March 8
Challenge by Nathan Collins on Youri Tielemans (90+6′)

Red card that should not have been shown (1)

1. Man City 3-1 Bournemouth, May 20
Serious foul play challenge by Lewis Cook on Nico Gonzalez (73′)

Goal disallowed that shouldn’t have been (3)

1. Brighton 1-1 Southampton, Nov. 29
Adam Armstrong offside — but not impacting on play (67′) (Watch here)

2. Tottenham 0-1 Man City, Feb. 26
Handball given against Erling Haaland (90+4′) (Watch here)

3. Newcastle 3-0 Ipswich, April 26
Challenge by Bruno Guimarães on Alex Palmer (22′) (Watch here)

Whistle blown before ball crossed line (3)

1. Brentford 2-1 Crystal Palace, Aug. 18
Challenge by Will Hughes on Nathan Collins before Eberechi Eze “scored” (26′)

2. Fulham 2-2 Bournemouth, Feb. 26
Challenge by Antoine Semenyo on Joachim Andersen before James Hill “scored” (32′)

3. Man United 2-0 Aston Villa, May 25
Challenge on Altay Bayindir before Morgan Rogers “scored” (72′) (Watch here)

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Second yellow cards

The KMI panel also looks at challenges made by players who could have received a second booking, or who were on a yellow and could have been sent off.

Fifteen errors were logged throughout the season, exactly the same number as in 2023-24.

The VAR is unable to intervene on an incorrect yellow card, even if it has led to a red card.

Incorrect second yellow cards (8)

Brighton 2-2 Nottingham Forest, Sept. 22
Morgan Gibbs-White (82′)

Fulham 1-3 Aston Villa, Oct. 19
Jaden Philogene (90+3′)

Ipswich 1-1 Leicester, Nov. 2
Kalvin Phillips (77′)

Bournemouth 1-2 Brighton, Nov. 23
Carlos Baleba (59′)

Crystal Palace 2-2 Man City, Dec. 7
Rico Lewis (84′)

Aston Villa 1-1 Ipswich, Feb. 15
Axel Tuanzebe (reference to first caution) (41′)

Crystal Palace 0-0 Bournemouth, April 19
Chris Richards (67′)

Bournemouth 0-1 Aston Villa, May 10
Jacob Ramsey (80′)

Missed second yellow cards (7)

Ipswich 2-2 Aston Villa, Sept. 29
Sam Morsy (70′)

Tottenham 1-1 Fulham, Dec. 1
Sasa Lukic (60′)

Everton 0-2 Nottingham Forest, Dec. 29
James Tarkowski (45′)

Aston Villa 2-1 West Ham, Jan. 26
Edson Álvarez (86′)

Southampton 0-0 Man City, May 10
Lesley Ugochukwu (45+2′)
Flynn Downes (57′)

Nottingham Forest 0-1 Chelsea, May 25
Elliot Anderson (79′)

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Referees: the best and the worst in the middle

We’ve had access to all 38 KMI reports across the 2024-25 season, and have tracked the performance of the referees. It’s probably no surprise to find Anthony Taylor and Michael Oliver are statistically two of the best officials in England, both with almost 95% accuracy.

Taylor’s stats are perhaps most remarkable as he’s been judged on 76 KMIs (far more than anyone else) across his 31 matches. And his percentage would have been higher but for a missed second yellow card for Elliot Anderson on the last day of the campaign, with the Nottingham Forest player having confronted the referee.

But it’s Simon Hooper, who was second in the table last year, who comes out on top with KMI accuracy of 94.92%

John Brooks, promoted to UEFA’s second tier of referees at the start of the season, was in first place in 2023-24, and he’s right up there again this time.

At the other end of the table, Darren Bond has the worst results, with nine mistakes, more than any other referee, from 37 KMIs — an accuracy of just 75.68%

Sam Barrott, widely regarded as one of the most promising referees in the game, had eight mistakes — including the Tarkowski red card — which keeps his accuracy down at 85.45%. Rob Jones and Tim Robinson also have eight errors.

And we also have to mention David Coote, who had a flawless record before he was sacked by PGMOL.

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Referees: the best and the worst as the VAR

Percentages are always going to be much higher for VARs, because they are being judged to a higher subjective threshold — and, as such, fewer errors can be made.

Stuart Attwell was statistically one of the worst VARs in 2023-24. Now, he’s the best and has shown why he’s regularly selected for international tournaments. Across 30 appointments, and 64 KMIs, the panel didn’t record a single mistake for him. Indeed, from 320 votes, on only eight occasions did a panelist disagree with his decision.

Craig Pawson and Andy Madley also have a 100% record, but from less than half the number of games.

Another with a perfect record is James Bell, an EFL referee who began working as a VAR in the Premier League in the second half of the season as part of an accelerated program to created dedicated VARs from outside the top-flight list.

We have to call out Michael Oliver here too: across 35 KMIs, he had just the one mistake and five votes against — when the panel voted 5-0 that he incorrectly stepped in to award the stoppage-time penalty to West Ham against Man United. Without that, he would have also had a 100% record.

Paul Tierney’s average is kept down by two errors on serious foul play, missing the red cards for Estupiñán and Tarkowski — and that’s a trend to last season when he should have intervened twice.

At the other end of the table, Darren England — who was on VAR for the Lewis-Skelly red card — has the lowest percentage of those to act as a video assistant regularly. Both he and Matt Donouhue (part of the accelerated program, like Bell) made three errors.

And we have to mention Coote again, as he had had a spotless record from his eight appointments before his suspension.

Last year, Michael Salisbury and John Brooks took the top two spots, with Tony Harrington and England at the bottom.

This season saw several other referees and assistants make their debuts as a VAR, like Bell and Donouhue. The likes of Alex Chilowicz, Neil Davies, Nick Hopton, Paul Howard and Timothy Wood also came through.