Watch: Lewandowski buries penalty after landmark VAR decision

Robert Lewandowski dispatched a cool penalty Friday to seal Bayern Munich's emphatic 3-1 win over Bayer Leverkusen after the video assistant referee (VAR) intervened for the first time in Bundesliga history to award the spot-kick.

Goals from summer signings Niklas Sule and Corentin Tolisso gave the five-time defending German champion a healthy advantage in the league opener, but it was Lewandowski's foul in the box that drew the landmark decision.

Match official Tobias Stieler didn't immediately award a penalty when Leverkusen midfielder Charles Aranguiz pulled back the Polish striker, but the VAR system - based hundreds of kilometres away in Cologne - determined that a foul had indeed taken place inside the box.

Admir Mehmedi later walloped a thunderbolt of a goal to hand the visitor some form of consolation on a rainy night.

The Bundesliga is one of the first leagues to use VAR technology to review goals, penalty decisions, and red cards.