Why USA’s 2nd goal by Alex Freeman was not offside

SEATTLE — For nearly two minutes Friday afternoon, confusion spread across the stadium.

Fans inside Seattle’s Lumen Field — called Seattle Stadium during the World Cup — all celebrated what they thought was a crucial second goal for the United States in their Group Stage match against Australia.

The assistant referee, however, had his flag raised. U.S. players began jogging back toward midfield assuming the goal had been wiped away.

Then came the VAR review.

When the dust settled, FIFA overturned the offside call and awarded the goal to 21-year-old Alex Freeman, giving the United States a commanding 2-0 lead just before halftime.

But there was no explanation for why the goal was overturned and the freeze-frame replay on television appeared to reveal three different American players standing in offside positions when Sergiño Dest struck his shot. Social media immediately erupted, convinced FIFA had gotten the decision wrong, with many users admitting that they had no idea how the offsides rule in soccer worked.

In reality, the freeze-frame only told part of the story.

Under the Laws of the Game, simply standing in an offside position is not an offense. A player can remain “passive” as long as he does not touch the ball, interfere with an opponent or gain an advantage from his position.

All three U.S. players who appeared offside met that definition. They never played the ball, challenged an Australian defender or impacted the sequence.

The only player who mattered was Freeman.

Using FIFA’s semi-automated offside technology, officials determined the young American right back was onside when Dest made contact with the ball. Freeman then attacked the loose deflection and headed it into the net.

Case closed.

The flag went up. VAR stepped in. FIFA got it right.

And Freeman, the son of former Green Bay Packers star Antonio Freeman, got the World Cup moment he had dreamed about his entire life.

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