Atletico Madrid CEO Miguel Angel Gil Marin has launched an extraordinary attack on Spanish refereeing, claiming he is “ashamed” after hearing the VAR audio that led to a Barcelona red card being overturned during Saturday’s 2-1 defeat.
The Wanda Metropolitano is still fuming. And the fury is not just about one decision, it is about a pattern.
Gerard Martin was shown a straight red card by on field referee Busquets Ferrer for a high tackle on Thiago Almada. Then VAR intervened. Melero Lopez advised a review. The red became a yellow. Atletico lost the game. And the roof came off.
“When we see the images and hear the audio shared by the Federation, all we can do is feel ashamed,” Marin said, as quoted by Marca.
“It’s unacceptable that they let us hear their comments, which are completely contrary to how VAR should function correctly, and nothing happens.”
‘VAR should not decide in place of the referee’
Marin was careful to acknowledge that referees, like players and coaches, have the right to make mistakes. But this, he insisted, was something else entirely.
“Referees have the same right to make mistakes as players, coaches, and managers, but mistakes in the game are just that: mistakes,” he said.
“It’s another thing entirely when a referee in the VAR booth influences the main referee when he’s judging a play.
“The on field referee must be responsible and make decisions by interpreting the intentions of each player. VAR should only intervene to correct uninterpretable errors, not to decide in place of the main referee.”
His frustration is palpable and shared by many inside Spanish football.
‘The criteria change and we don’t know what to expect’
Marin pointed to a lack of consistency that he believes is damaging the integrity of the competition.
“It’s not normal that different decisions are made for identical plays, that the criteria change, and that we don’t know what to expect,” he said.
“It’s happened to us in the last two matchdays. It makes no sense.”
He has a point. When even the clubs cannot predict whether a tackle will be a red or a yellow from one week to the next, something has gone wrong.
Le Normand: ‘Everyone who understands football knows it was a red’
Marin was not alone in his anger. Atletico defender Robin Le Normand, never one to hold back, also let rip.
“Now they’re going to say it wasn’t a red card, but everyone who understands football knows it was,” he said.
“If I did that, it would almost certainly be a red. We saw it recently in the Betis Rayo Vallecano match, and the CTA ruled it a red. I don’t know what happened today with the same action.”
He also criticised the referee’s overall management of the game.
“Today, you couldn’t talk to anyone, not even the captain. Every time something happened, he handed out a yellow card and raised the bar for the game instead of lowering it.
“Everyone can make mistakes, and today I think he made one. Everyone saw it. It was the little things that affected the game. It was the little things that hurt us.”
What this means for the title race
The defeat left Atletico outside the top three, one point behind Villarreal. Barcelona, meanwhile, remain seven points clear of Real Madrid at the summit after the champions slipped up against Mallorca.
But here is the thing. These two sides meet again almost immediately.
The Champions League quarter final first leg is up next. Barcelona vs Atletico. Again. Only this time, the stakes are even higher.
Simeone’s side will be looking for revenge. And they will be playing with a sense of injustice that could either fuel them or consume them.
The bigger picture
Marin’s outburst will not change Saturday’s result. But it adds to a growing sense that Spanish refereeing is in crisis.
VAR was supposed to bring clarity. Instead, it has brought confusion, controversy, and now a CEO publicly questioning its integrity.
The audio has been heard. The decision stands. But the anger is not going away.
And when these two sides meet again in the Champions League, do not expect the refereeing debates to disappear. If anything, they are just getting started.
