The Real Reason Mbappé’s Penalty Was Not Retaken After the Real Betis Controversy

The final moments of Real Madrid’s clash with Real Betis produced far more than a painful defeat for José Mourinho’s side. They also created one of the most debated incidents of the match. With Madrid desperately searching for a late equaliser, Kylian Mbappé found himself at the centre of a penalty incident that initially appeared to contain all the elements needed for a possible retake.

The situation became even more controversial after Betis goalkeeper Álvaro Valles saved Mbappé’s penalty and Marc Bartra immediately intervened to prevent Madrid from capitalising on the rebound. Television replays appeared to show the Betis defender moving into the penalty area as the kick was taken, prompting Real Madrid players to protest and raise the possibility that the penalty should have been retaken.

The incident occurred deep into stoppage time after Natan brought down Vinícius Júnior inside the penalty area. The referee awarded Real Madrid a penalty, leaving Mbappé with a huge opportunity to rescue his team from defeat after Troy Parrott had given Betis the lead.

Mbappé stepped up to take the penalty, but his effort was not powerful enough to beat Valles. The Betis goalkeeper read the attempt correctly and made the save, before Bartra cleared the loose ball.

That sequence immediately sparked the controversy. Replays appeared to show Bartra entering the area as Mbappé struck the ball, leading to questions over whether the penalty should have been taken again.

However, the decisive detail was not simply whether Bartra’s body was inside the penalty area. The key issue was the position of his feet at the exact moment Mbappé made contact with the ball.

According to the interpretation applied by Spain’s Technical Committee of Referees, a player is considered to have encroached during a penalty when one or both feet are inside the penalty area or touching its line at the moment the kick is taken.

In Bartra’s case, the defender was moving through the air, meaning that his feet were not making contact with the ground inside the penalty area when Mbappé struck the ball. As a result, the officials did not consider his movement an infringement that required the penalty to be retaken.

That interpretation was also consistent with Bartra’s own understanding of the situation. The Betis defender later indicated that he was aware of the specific rule and had previously discussed a similar situation with a referee. According to Bartra, if the player is effectively in the air and does not have a foot on the ground inside the area when the penalty is taken, the kick does not have to be repeated.

The controversy was ultimately decided by the position of Bartra’s feet, rather than simply by the apparent position of his body.

The decision meant that Real Madrid did not receive another opportunity from the penalty spot. Valles’ save remained valid, Bartra’s intervention stood, and Betis were able to protect their 1-0 advantage until the final whistle.

The penalty was particularly significant because it represented Real Madrid’s final realistic opportunity to equalise. Mbappé had already been denied several times during the match, including an effort that struck the crossbar, while Carlos Espí also saw an impressive bicycle-kick goal ruled out for offside following a VAR review.

Troy Parrott’s goal in the 81st minute ultimately proved decisive. The Betis forward reacted quickly after Thibaut Courtois saved Nelson Deossa’s header and fired the rebound into the net.

The defeat ended Real Madrid’s perfect start to the 2026-27 LaLiga season. Mourinho’s team had won its first three league matches before suffering the 1-0 loss to Betis.

For Mbappé, the missed penalty became the defining image of a frustrating night. However, the controversy surrounding the incident was not caused by the penalty itself being wrongly awarded. Instead, the debate centred on whether Bartra had legally encroached before the kick.

The answer from the referee and VAR was no. Although Bartra appeared to be inside the area, the crucial detail was that neither of his feet was touching the ground inside the penalty area at the precise moment Mbappé struck the ball.

That small technical detail ultimately prevented a retake and allowed Real Betis to secure a 1-0 victory over Real Madrid.