Official of the controversial Saint-Etienne vs. Lyon match will not referee this weekend after VAR error

The Saint-Etienne and Lyon match on Sunday was a very controversial match. It was halted for a long time after an object (a coin, apparently) was thrown by an spectator, and hit Mehdi Rahmouni, an assistant referee. François Letexier, the referee, stopped the game, and it was later resumed, under condition of a complete cancellation if another incident happened. Saint-Etienne ended up winning 2-1.

However, that was far from the greatest controversy at the Derby des Rhône-Alpes. Letexier initially sent off Lucas Stassin from Saint-Etienne for a violent tackle over Corentin Tolisso. Later, after checking with VAR, he corrected his decision and gave him a yellow card.

But the problem was that the right choice was his first, and Tolisso should have seen a red card. A miscommunication with VAR, showing a wrong angle, led to the situation of VAR actually worsening the refereeing, instead of correcting it, as it should be. Willy Delajod, in charge of VAR, was very criticised afterward, but it was Letexier who took all the blame in the field, and the rage from Lyon' fans.

And now, it seems that Letexier, voted world's best referee in 2024 by the IFFHS, has been "punished" by being side-lined this weekend, as he will not be in charge of any matches in the 31st matchday of the league. Although, as RMC Sport points out, he could have been given a rest after a overload of matches, including the Real Madrid vs. Arsenal second leg last week (one halted for a lengthy period while VAR checked a penalty for Madrid that was later cancelled).