The Spanish referees team in the match between France and Austria faced UEFA’s decision to cease their duties at Euro 2024 following consecutive controversial decisions.

After the conclusion of the Euro 2024 group stage, UEFA made several adjustments aimed at improving the tournament’s quality in the remaining matches, including a reshuffle of referees.

Specifically, four Spanish referees were dismissed by UEFA from their roles at Euro 2024. This action was prompted by their handling of the France vs. Austria match in Group D, where errors led to significant discontent from both teams.

A peak moment of contention arose in the 35th minute when referee Jesus Gil Manzano denied Austria a corner kick opportunity, after which France scored the only goal of the match through an own goal by defender Maximilian Wober.

However, not only Austria but also Les Bleus were dissatisfied with some lenient decisions by Manzano. The match saw a total of 24 fouls, turning the Merkur Spiel Arena into a battlefield with the highest number of fouls in the Euro 2024 group stage.

This led the main referee to issue seven yellow cards, with five going to Austria and the rest to France. However, French coach Didier Deschamps and players were particularly aggrieved by Kylian Mbappe’s yellow card, which Manzano attributed to the 26-year-old superstar’s deliberate time-wasting tactics.

This was Manzano’s first and only match as the main referee at Euro 2024. His assistant referees Diego Barbero Sevilla and Angel Nevado Rodriguez also faced the same fate, along with Alejandro Jose Hernandez Hernandez, the Spanish VAR referee.

As of now, only one Spanish referee, Juan Juan Martinez Munuera, remains employed at Euro 2024, serving in the VAR room.