Marc Cucurella's handball during extra time of the EURO 2024 quarterfinals, when Spain and Germany were tied 1-1, should have been awarded as a penalty, according to UEFA's Referees Committee, after reviewing the play and providing updated guidelines on how such incidents should be handled.

As reported by Relevo, referees have been given this instruction by UEFA as part of the report on how to deal with match situations, such as the action where a shot on goal by Jamal Musiala hit Cucurella's left hand, which was positioned downwards.

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The German team appealed for a penalty, but the main referee, Englishman Anthony Taylor, did not award one, nor did the VAR indicate a potential penalty.

The incident sparked significant controversy in Germany, who were eliminated from EURO 2024 in that match against Spain when Mikel Merino scored the winning goal in the 119th minute, following Dani Olmo’s opener in the 52nd minute and Florian Wirtz’s equalizer in the 89th minute.

UEFA’s conclusion represents a new interpretation of handball rules for referees, who, until now, have not called penalties if the hands were down, close to the player's body, and the player neither enlarged their body space nor had time to withdraw their hand before the ball made contact.