Tragic event as referee convicted of fining Harry Kane for diving in Euro 24 qualifier as his mother falls to her death while taking a selfie in a ravine

A Portuguese referee who was criticised for showing Harry Kane a yellow card during England’s Euro 2024 qualifier against Malta is in mourning after his mother fell into a ravine while taking a holiday selfie.

Luis Godinho’s mother, Fatima, died when she lost her balance while taking photographs on the island of São Miguel in the Azores.

The tragedy took place yesterday at around 1.30pm in the beautiful Ribeira dos Caldeiroes natural park.

According to local reports, the 62-year-old man fell about 20 meters from a waterfall and was already dead when firefighters arrived.

It was not immediately clear whether she was alone or with friends or family at the time.

Fatima Godinho, 62, lost her life after losing her balance while taking photos in a beautiful natural park in the Azores called Ribeira dos Caldeiroes

Godinho and his family received a message of support from the Portuguese Association of Football Referees (APAF), whose General Assembly he was sworn in as president of in April.

“APAF sends a big hug to the President of the General Assembly, Luis Godinho, and his family for the irreparable loss they have suffered with the death of his mother,” the organization said in a statement.

‘On behalf of the entire referee family, we express our sincere condolences to Luis and his family.’

Players and fans were stunned when Godinho gave Kane a yellow card for a simulation during the Three Lions’ 2-0 win over Malta last November after goalkeeper Henry Bonello fouled him in the penalty area.

The Bayern Munich striker admitted after the match that he was ‘surprised’ that the decision was not overturned, but added elegantly: ‘Sometimes VAR doesn’t want to get involved too much, but that’s what it is. That’s football and it’s part of it.’

In the same match, a fantastic goal from Declan Rice was disallowed after Kane was deemed to have disrupted play from an offside position.

In January 2017, father-of-two Godinho made headlines by sending off Porto midfielder Danilo after standing on him.

The referee’s bizarre decision came in the 79th minute of Porto’s away match against Moreirense, when the referee ran backwards onto the pitch with his eyes on the game.

Luis Godinho is the president of the Portuguese Association of Football Referees

Godinho gave Danilo a second yellow card and then another red after hitting the footballer and mistaking the midfielder’s attempt to get rid of him as an act of mischief.

The deportation decision was described at the time as one of the most absurd decisions ever.

Danilo expressed his frustration on his Instagram account after the match.

He said: ‘I’ve watched the footage over a hundred times and honestly I can’t understand this gentleman’s criteria for making such a decision.

‘I’ve seen a lot of football episodes, but this was without a doubt the most shameful!’