Harry Kane smacked a second-half penalty against the crossbar during England's Nations League clash with Spain - and might actually be relieved that he missed. A spot-kick was awarded for the Three Lions after Italian referee Davide Massa consulted the VAR pitchside monitor and ruled that Jude Bellingham had been fouled by Rodri inside the box. England captain Kane stepped up to the spot but smashed his penalty against the underside of the bar to the relief of goalkeeper Unai Simon.
Yet the Bayern Munich centre-forward broke a rare rule in the process - he hit the ball twice. Kane's standing left leg touched the ball before his right foot. The double-touch was only clear on replays. Had he scored, the skipper's goal would have been ruled out and he would have been told to retake the penalty. The 33-year-old could have scored the first attempt and celebrated, only to be left embarrassed if he missed the resulting retake. IFAB rules, which are used by UEFA, state that penalties scored with an accidental double-touch must be retaken, while missed spot-kicks result in an indirect free-kick being given to the opposition.
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That was the case at Wembley, as after two Spain substitutions, Massa eventually awarded the World Cup winners a free-kick inside their own box.
A statement released by UEFA in June 2025 read: "UEFA will immediately implement the clarification provided by IFAB of Law 14 with regard to cases of double touch of the ball by the player taking a penalty kick.
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"Consequently, all UEFA matches will now be played under the new interpretation of Law 14."
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Law 14 states: "If, before the ball is in play, one of the following occurs:
the kicker accidentally kicks the ball with both feet simultaneously or the ball touches their non-kicking foot or leg immediately after the kick:
if the ball enters the goal from the kick, the kick is retaken
if the ball does not enter the goal from the kick, an indirect free kick is awarded."
Kane's penalty miss was his first since Qatar 2022. He had scored nine penalties in a row since then. It came in the 55th minute and by the 60th, it was 2-2 as Alex Baena equalised for the world champions quickly after coming on.
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England and Spain played out a thrilling first hour in London, with Spain taking a lead inside two minutes as Lamine Yamal profited from a Marc Guehi error to open the scoring.
The Three Lions hit back with two quickfire goals before the break with Anthony Gordon and Kane both finding the net to ignite the Wembley crowd.
Substitute Mikel Oyarzabal, who scored the winner in the Euro 2024 final when Spain beat England in Berlin, came on to restore the visitors' lead in the 74th minute with a beautiful lofted finish.
Kane's first-half goal was his 86th for his country on his 122nd cap. But Thomas Tuchel's talismanic No.9 will be disappointed he didn't score more, having also had a fine first-half opportunity when he curled just wide rather than pass to Gordon in the space inside the area.
Kane was taken off in the 83rd minute and replaced by Dominic Calvert-Lewin, with the Leeds United frontman earning his 13th cap.
Despite the changes, with Morgan Rogers, James Garner and Morgan Gibbs-White all also coming on for England, Tuchel's team ultimately lost 3-2 in their Nations League opener. They are back in action on Tuesday when they face Czechia in Prague.