VAR overturns involving Arsenal this season: 2 went against Arsenal (penalty overturned v Villa, goal ruled out v Chelsea), 0 in Arsenal's favour. This counts the direction of each overturn as recorded by the data feed; it is not a judgement on whether the decisions were correct. Panel verdicts, where they exist, are quoted below.
Every VAR overturn in Arsenal's games
| Date | Opponent | Score | Minute | What happened | Direction | Referee |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 31 Aug | Villa (A) | 0-1 | 55' | Penalty overturned after VAR review (Arsenal, Bukayo Saka) | Against | Jarred Gillett |
| Sun 6 Sept | Chelsea (H) | 2-1 | 13' | Goal ruled out after VAR review (Arsenal, Riccardo Calafiori) | Against | Chris Kavanagh |
3 of Arsenal's 5 games had no VAR overturn recorded. Scores are home-away.
Covers every finished Premier League game up to Sunday 20 September 2026 (Matchweek 5). Updated 30 September 2026.
Incidents from Arsenal's games reviewed by the KMI panel
Votes are written as the Premier League prints them: the first figure is the number of panellists who agreed with the printed verdict.
- Villa v Arsenal, Mon 31 Aug, 53:43. Penalty awarded. Challenge by Maatsen (AVL) on Saka (ARS). On-field decision: incorrect, factually outside the area (0:5); VAR overturned the on-field decision, which the panel found correct (5:0). The referee was Jarred Gillett.
"The VAR intervention to award a free kick instead of a penalty was unanimously supported with the foul occurring just outside the area."Key Match Incidents panel, Match Round 2, published by the Premier League on 9 September 2026. Article, full table (PDF).
- Villa v Arsenal, Mon 31 Aug, 90:00+07:27. Penalty not awarded. Challenge by Maatsen (AVL) on Guimaraes (ARS). On-field decision: incorrect, foul by Maatsen (0:5); no VAR intervention, which the panel found incorrect, clear and obvious error (0:5). The referee was Jarred Gillett.
"The panel felt that a penalty should have been awarded on-field for Maatsen's reckless challenge on Guimaraes. Clear contact was made on the attacker's standing leg and Maatsen made no contact with the ball. They also felt that VAR should have intervened as the non-penalty award was a clear and obvious error."Key Match Incidents panel, Match Round 2, published by the Premier League on 9 September 2026. Article, full table (PDF).
- Villa v Arsenal, Mon 31 Aug, 90:00+07:28. Second caution not given. Challenge by Maatsen (AVL) on Guimaraes (ARS). On-field decision: incorrect (0:5); VAR not applicable. The referee was Jarred Gillett.
"The panel felt that the challenge was reckless and therefore a second caution should have been awarded."Key Match Incidents panel, Match Round 2, published by the Premier League on 9 September 2026. Article, full table (PDF).
- Arsenal v Chelsea, Sun 6 Sept, 11:11. Goal awarded. Konsa (ARS) in an onside position. On-field decision: incorrect, Konsa offside (0:5); VAR overturned the on-field decision, which the panel found correct (5:0). The referee was Chris Kavanagh.
"The VAR intervention to disallow the goal for an offside offence against Konsa was supported."Key Match Incidents panel, Match Round 3, published by the Premier League on 16 September 2026. Article, full table (PDF).
- Sunderland v Arsenal, Sat 12 Sept, 53:28. Penalty awarded. Challenge by Konsa (ARS) on Ballard (SUN). On-field decision: incorrect (0:5); no VAR intervention, which the panel found correct, not a clear and obvious error (3:2). The referee was John Brooks.
"The panel unanimously felt that the referee's call of a penalty for a holding offence was incorrect. Although it was a very untidy challenge in which Konsa initially had arms around Ballard, Ballard engages in a holding action which pulls Konsa onto him so they both fall to the floor. The non-VAR intervention was supported, 3:2, with the majority considering that the on-field decision was not a clear and obvious error, given the combined actions from both players."Key Match Incidents panel, Match Round 4, published by the Premier League on 23 September 2026. Article, full table (PDF).
- Sunderland v Arsenal, Sat 12 Sept, 90:00+05:16. Penalty awarded and second caution given. Challenge by Mandava (SUN) on Saka (ARS). On-field decision: correct (5:0); no VAR intervention, which the panel found correct (5:0). The referee was John Brooks.
"The on-field award of a penalty was supported with an initial holding action by Reinildo followed by a genuine attempt to challenge for the ball, tripping Saka inside the penalty area. The second caution dismissal for Reinildo was supported."Key Match Incidents panel, Match Round 4, published by the Premier League on 23 September 2026. Article, full table (PDF).
What is counted here. The data feed records that VAR intervened and what the outcome was: a goal ruled out, a goal awarded, a penalty overturned, a card upgraded. It does not record whether a decision was right, and neither does this page. "In favour" and "against" describe whose goal, penalty or card the overturn concerned. The only bodies that rule on correctness are the Premier League's Key Match Incidents panel and Pro Ref, the referees' body formerly known as PGMOL; where the panel has published a verdict it is quoted with its date on the KMI panel page.
Common questions
How many VAR decisions have gone against Arsenal this season?
2 of the 2 VAR overturns recorded in Arsenal's 5 games up to 20 September 2026 concerned Arsenal's own goal, penalty or card (penalty overturned v Villa, goal ruled out v Chelsea). That is the direction of the overturn, not a verdict on it; the Premier League's panel has published verdicts on 6 incidents from Arsenal's games, quoted on this page.
Who decides whether a VAR decision was wrong?
The Premier League's Key Match Incidents panel, which votes on each chosen incident and publishes its verdicts about ten days after the round, and Pro Ref (formerly PGMOL) through its own statements. This site quotes both with dates and never adds a verdict of its own. See the KMI panel page.
Who has refereed Arsenal's games this season?
Every referee and the record under each is on the Arsenal referees page.