'No evidence' ball hit cable for Bellingham World Cup goal: FIFA

FIFA on Saturday said there was “no evidence” to support claims that England’s equaliser in the 2-1 win over Norway in the World Cup quarter-final should have been ruled out after the ball appeared to strike a camera cable in the build-up.

Norway’s players protested to French referee Clement Turpin after Bellingham scored in first-half stoppage time to make it 1-1 at the Hard Rock Stadium.

Footage of Orjan Nyland’s goal-kick that started the passage of play which led to Bellingham’s goal showed the ball’s trajectory appearing to change suddenly and dropping down into the path of England midfielder Elliot Anderson.

Under the laws of the game that should have led to play being halted for a drop ball.

Breaking: re the ball possibly hitting camera cable in lead up to England goal, FIFA says they “have checked the data and no peak on the graph from the connected ball heartbeat sensor”pic.twitter.com/RC4oCQnilo

— GibsonVT (@Gibson_VT) July 12, 2026

FIFA though said Saturday that a chip sensor embedded in the ball — the same technology used to disallow a goal in Croatia’s knockout defeat to Portugal earlier in the tournament — showed there was no sign of the ball hitting the cable.

“Before England’s goal in minute 45+2 against Norway, the sensor in the Connected Ball showed no peak in the ‘heartbeat of the ball’ when in the air, and therefore no evidence that the ball touched the overhead wire and changed the movement of the ball,” the statement said.