Dear FIFA:
I would like to thank you for tainting the 2010 World Cup. Because of your regulations, I have found myself yelling at my television set like a maniac. This is doing nothing for my stress level or my blood pressure. I know I’m not alone; your decisions have impacted teams from most continents.
What am I talking about? Goal-line technology. Or rather, a serious lack thereof. Any kind of replay would be useful really. But because you choose to remain in the stone age, we are left with referees having to rely on what they think they may have seen. And honestly, it’s just not working.
I’m not even writing as an angry American fan. Yes, you fucked over my team. Twice. TWO TIMES. Group play game 2: I’m still not sure what that penalty was. Offsides? A foul? You tell me. Then in game 3: Dempsey was perfectly even (or even a little back) with the last defender. That’s a goal.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ir8RPnLXmyU&feature=fvst[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXXHXwzMRE8[/youtube]
But again, I’m not trying to be an angry American. Let’s look at some of the other muffed calls:
- Italy vs. New Zealand: Smeltz is clearly offsides. No goal. No tie. NZ shouldn’t have gotten that point. Sorry Kiwis!
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADZn0GB-674[/youtube]
- England vs. Germany: I’m sorry, but that ball was at least a full foot over the line. There is NO question that was a goal. When your tying goal is disallowed that really changes the mentality you have in the game. It’s just not OK. You tell me – how did this not count?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9brBl8Wzfc&hd=1
- Mexico vs. Argentina: Mexico got FUCKED. This was clearly offsides. From here they self-destructed. I would like to at least dream that the game would have been much closer were it not for this terrible call by the referee AND line judge.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJ0nNsZ53aI&hd=1[/youtube]
So there you have it. 5 solid examples of game-changing, even tournament-changing calls that would have easily been correct if replay technology were allowed. As a true fan of soccer, I urge you to maintain the sanctity of the game by allowing such technology onto the pitch. The status-quo just isn’t cutting it anymore.
Sincerely,
Caro 
