Former referee accuses Georgia Stanway of diving for penalty in England’s victory over Wales | OneFootball

Georgia Stanway has been accused of diving for her penalty in England’s victory against Wales. (Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images)

A former referee has claimed that Georgia Stanway should not have been awarded a penalty during England’s victory against Wales.

The midfielder won the penalty, which she converted from, to give England a 1-0 lead against Wales.

England went on to take a 6-1 victory after goals from Ella Toone, Lauren Hemp, Alessia Russo, Beth Mead, and Aggie-Beever Jones.

Former Premier League and FIFA referee Keith Hackett believed that Stanway dived and should not have been awarded a penalty.

What did the referee say about Georgia Stanway?

Speaking to Football Insider, former Premier League and FIFA referee Keith Hackett said that England should not have been awarded a penalty against Wales.

Georgia Stanway won the penalty and scored from the spot to give the Lionesses a 1-0 lead.

It came following a lengthy VAR review after referee Frida Klarlund initially awarded a free-kick when Carrie Jones was ruled to have clipped Stanway close to the 18-yard line.

Hackett though felt the debate was not over whether it was a free-kick or penalty, but whether it was even a foul.

He said: “Wow. They got that one wrong. That’s an act of simulation – it’s not a penalty kick. I will clarify that if the incident happens on the line, it is a penalty kick.

“However, this is an act of simulation, so it’s not a penalty kick for me. The referee has been caught out here. They need to watch for the actions of the player going to ground.”

“This player has manufactured contact. The England player is already going down before there’s any contact from the Wales player. Wrong decision.”

Why were England awarded a penalty against Wales?

The decision to award Georgia Stanway a penalty for England against Wales was controversial.

Carrie Jones made two attempts to knick the ball off Stanway before appearing to bring down the England midfielder.

It was debateable as to whether enough contact was made to bring Stanway down but after a lengthy VAR review it appeared that the referee would be sent to the monitor.

However, the VAR official did not send Frida Klarlund to the monitor, and the referee instead pointed to the spot without checking the incident.

The VAR decision was confirmed to have been made on whether the foul took place inside the area, rather than whether it was a foul. This is an objective decision and did not require an on-field review from the referee.

A UEFA statement said: “Wales’ player No20 [Jones] committed the foul inside the penalty area.”

What’s next for England at Euro 2025?

England booked their place in the quarter-finals of Euro 2025 with their 6-1 win over Wales.

Sarina Wiegman’s side will face Sweden on Thursday – in a rematch from their semi-final triumph back in 2022.

According to the UK’s top betting sites, England are 10/11 favourites to beat Sweden who are priced at 23/10 to knock out the Lionesses in 90 minutes. A draw is available odds of 2/1 – which would see the game go to extra-time and potentially penalties.