Motherwell lost to Celtic 3-2 after a controversial penalty was awarded to Celtic. The Scottish FA's key match incident (KMI) panel has ruled that referee John Beaton was wrong to issue the match-winning spot-kick.

What happened?

The penalty was awarded in the 99th minute of the game, with Celtic trailing 2-2. VAR Andrew Dallas intervened to alert match referee John Beaton to his belief that Motherwell winger Sam Nicholson had touched the ball with his hand.

Reaction to the decision

The backlash to the spot-kick award was ferocious and widespread, with Hearts boss Derek McInnes calling it "disgusting" and Motherwell player Elliot Watt saying it was "the worst VAR decision in history".

Current standing

As of 25 Jun 2026, Motherwell is 4th in Premiership, with 54 pts, 14W-12D-7L from 33 games, recent form WLDLW. | Stat | Value | | --- | --- | | League standing | 4th in Premiership | | Points | 54 | | Wins | 14 | | Draws | 12 | | Losses | 7 | | Recent form | WLDLW |

Last result

Motherwell's last result was a 1-0 win against Hibernian on 2026-05-16.

The KMI panel confirmed that the referee was correct with his initial decision not to award a penalty and the VAR intervention outcome was incorrect. This decision has had a huge bearing on the title race, with Celtic ultimately winning the title.