Video: Frank Lampard Scores the Equalizer That Wasn’t for England

This is a goal. It wasn’t called one. That’s a travesty.

Sure, it’s fun to talk about the karma involved in an England-Germany match—England had a controversial goal counted in the 1966 World Cup final that many Germans still maintain never crossed the line—but the fact is that Frank Lampard scored a goal here. It just doesn’t count. (Unless you made a bet with British bookmakers William Hill, who are paying out to bettors who had Lampard scoring.)

Lampard’s lofted strike came as a shock, happening no more than a minute after a Matthew Upson header cut the German lead in half, but the surprise of it won’t work as an excuse for poor refereeing to Three Lions supporters if England loses. It won’t fly for proponents of fairness at all, especially because the technology to prevent errors like this exists and has been repeatedly dismissed by FIFA.

This is a goal. It just doesn’t count as one. And as every soccer pundit will be right to say, that is a monstrous disgrace.

Another video after the jump, because FIFA gets grabby with these.

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