The French side endured a nightmare start to the final. While PSG dominated possession in the opening quarter-hour (78% to Arsenal’s 22%), it was the London club that took the lead. The Parisians gifted the opening goal in the fifth minute after a misplaced clearance by Marquinhos found Leandro Trossard, who inadvertently set up Kai Havertz in depth. On the left flank, the German advanced past Matvey Safonov before unleashing a thunderous strike under the crossbar (5th minute).

Just moments later, the reigning champions thought they had leveled the score. Shortly after the 15-minute mark, Bukayo Saka received a corner delivered by Ousmane Dembélé. The English international, positioned near the edge of the penalty area, deflected the ball onto his outstretched arms before making a third contact with his hand. The Parisians immediately appealed for a penalty, but the referee, German official Daniel Siebert, waved play on, and the VAR did not intervene.

Did Saka artificially expand his body’s covered surface?

Under IFAB Law 12, which states that “not every touch of the ball by a player’s hand or arm constitutes an offense,” a handball is penalized only if it is deliberate or if the player has artificially enlarged the space occupied by their body. In this instance, Saka’s arms were clearly away from his torso, but officials likely judged that his position was a natural result of attempting to clear the ball.

The decision sparked fierce debate online. Critics argued, “He touched the ball with his hand 27 times in two seconds—everything’s fine,” and mocked the outcome with hashtags like #VARsenal. Others defended the referee’s call, stating, “He handled it himself like Neves’ handball in Munich,” and insisting, “there was nothing wrong—it’s hard to award a penalty in such cases.” By halftime, despite creating a few chances, PSG had failed to equalize.