Referee Suspended for Using Cellphone as VAR During a Match

• There is a term "only in Africa" to describe anything absurd transpiring on the continent
• However, it is not without its merits considering the outrage which occurred in Egypt
• A referee used a cell phone as the video assistant referee to confirm a decision

African football shenanigans never cease to amaze its enthusiasts and critics.

The latest incident will truly stand out in a catalogue of outrageous scenes throughout the Beautiful Game's history on the continent.

BBC Sport Africa reported that Egyptian referee Mohamed Farouk ridiculously improvised the video assistant referee (VAR) during a second-division match between Al Nasr and Suez. Amazingly, he used a spectator's cellular phone as a replay of an alleged handball, which led to him disallowing a goal that resulted from this action.

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The Egyptian Football Association swiftly announced that action against Farouk and his assistants had been taken by stating:

"Suspension of the staff of the referees of the Suez and Al-Nasr national team match indefinitely. The main referees committee of the Egyptian Federation, headed by Portuguese Vitor Pereira, decided to suspend the referees for the Suez and Al-Nasr match, which was held in the twenty-second round of Group Two competitions in the Premier League “B”, for an indefinite period."

Superstar throws boot at referee

There is always a chance that fans will witness a moment of madness, especially when it comes to referees, as reported by Sports Brief.

It was in January 2015 in a Copa del Rey clash between Barcelona and Atletico Madrid and Los Colchoneros were growing increasingly frustrated as they were losing the game 3-2 (4-2 on aggregate).

In the second half, Turan, who was clearly losing his mind as the game progressed, somehow took out his anger on the linesman, taking off his boot and hurling it in the direction of the stunned match official.

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Other players who have shoved the referee

Sports Brief also reported on an interesting list of other players who have previously shoved the referee.

Man-handling the referee tends to have severe consequences, and the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Paolo Di Canio and Rick Karsdorp all learnt this the hard way.

Some of these players somehow did not get sent off after the incident.