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England vs Colombia referee: Controversial Mark Geiger VAR decision dumped Germany out
ENGLAND face Colombia in the World Cup last-16 today and referee Mark Geiger will be in charge.
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England are hoping to reach the quarter-finals of a World Cup for the first time since 2006.
The Three Lions take on a Colombia side in Moscow that has enjoyed a turbulent tournament so far.
Colombia topped Group H but only after coming back from an opening-game defeat to Japan.
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England themselves are hoping to regain their winning formula following last Thursday’s 1-0 defeat to Belgium.
And the man in the middle for the 7pm kick off will be referee Mark Geiger.
But but is Mark Geiger and what’s happened to him in the tournament so far?
England vs Colombia referee
Mark Geiger is a US referee from Major League Soccer.
He was the first ever American to referee a World Cup knockout match, having overseen France’s 2-0 win over Nigeria in the last-16 stage of Brazil 2014.
Coral reveal that he was a secondary school maths teacher for 17 years and ‘won a presidential award for teaching in maths and science’.
Mark Geiger VAR controversy
Mark Geiger is well versed in VAR after using the technology in the 2017 Confederations Cup.
He has also used VAR to aid his decisions at this World Cup.
Geiger went to the off-pitch TV monitor to check a Toni Kroos error in the lead-up to a South Korea goal in their 2-0 win over Germany.
The goal proved crucial as the Germans were dumped out of the tournament in the group stage.
VAR in MLS
Mark Geiger has also used VAR in the American top flight - as recently as May in a match between Atlanta United and Sporting Kansas City.
Amazingly, he chalked off a United goal that day because, as Goal put it, ‘he felt Sporting Kansas City defender Jimmy Medranda hadn't intentionally handled the ball that eventually found its way to an offside Josef Martinez’.