The 2026 World Cup has started with four games, three opening ceremonies, and victories for two of the host nations already in the books.
Despite some issues around ticket prices and blocked entry for match officials and players, the tournament itself has made a broadly positive start.
However, football fans and coaches are now grappling with a raft of rule changes that are leaving players, supporters, and TV viewers increasingly confused.
Dutch referee Danny Makkelie stopped the United States versus Paraguay game in the second half after Antonee Robinson headed the ball from the home penalty area, initially without a clear explanation.
It emerged that Spanish VAR Carlos del Cerro Grande had sent Makkelie to the pitchside monitor to review a yellow card issued to USA captain Tim Ream for fouling Paraguay forward Miguel Almiron.
Almiron had not been touched, so Makkelie reversed the caution and instead booked the former Newcastle player for simulation.
BBC commentator Danny Murphy praised the intervention, saying “Good spot and the right decision I may add. That’s the main thing. Any adaptation of the rules that means diving gets punished is good.”
However, well-placed sources have told BBC Sport that Makkelie’s decision was in fact wrong in law, even if it appeared correct at the time.
According to the International Football Association Board, mistaken identity can only apply when a referee “has clearly penalised the wrong player” for the same offence, and “the offence itself cannot be reviewed.”
In this case, a foul by Ream was corrected to simulation by Almiron, meaning two entirely different offences were involved, which falls outside the scope of the mistaken identity rule.
There is also a significant VAR protocol issue, given that the review took place after the referee had clearly restarted play with a Paraguay free-kick, which should have made any review impossible.
Football issues correspondent Dale Johnson noted that the rule change was originally introduced following Euro 2016, when France’s Laurent Koscielny was booked for a handball that was actually committed by Portugal striker Eder — the same offence, different player.
Head of referees Pierluigi Collina did not reference diving in relation to mistaken identity during any briefings over the past six months, suggesting this was never the intended application of the rule.
World governing body Fifa is yet to clarify the situation, leaving broadcasters, fans, and coaches uncertain about when VAR can intervene on diving going forward.
Former England defender Phil Jagielka was broadly supportive of the principle, telling BBC Sport “Tim Ream gets booked – he could end up getting sent off, and he’s physically not touched someone.”
Jagielka did acknowledge the complications, adding “The only thing is, what happens if I touch you a tiny bit and then you dive? You can’t reverse it, because I’ve touched you, even though my touch hasn’t made you collapse and fall over.”
USA coach Mauricio Pochettino, speaking before his side’s 4-1 win against Paraguay in Los Angeles, also weighed in on the tournament’s mandatory three-minute hydration breaks, saying “I don’t like it. I only like it when the conditions are extreme, but when the conditions are good, it is unnecessary.”
Sweden coach Graham Potter echoed that sentiment, having previously said during a Premier League Summer Series match in Chicago “I have no idea why there was a water break. Somebody needs to tell me why that was the case. I assumed there wasn’t going to be one because I came out with a jumper.”
Jagielka, however, sees the breaks as potentially game-changing for coaches, saying “That three minutes could be massive. If your team’s not doing well, and it’s a loud stadium, it’s nigh on impossible to get messages on to players.”
He went further, suggesting “I’d say it’s more important than half-time,” adding that a struggling side could “literally turn a game around in that break.”
On the new five-second throw-in rule, Bosnia-Herzegovina left-back Sead Kolasinac found himself on the wrong side of it in Toronto, when Argentine referee Facundo Tello intervened and awarded Canada the throw after Kolasinac was too slow to act.
With Fifa yet to issue any formal clarification on the VAR diving situation, more contentious moments seem inevitable as the tournament progresses.
