​The Egyptian Football Association has stated that it has asked FIFA to remove the officials responsible for Egypt’s World Cup last-16 defeat to Argentina from the tournament. In a formal submission to football’s global governing body, the EFA called for an investigation into what it described as “double standards” in officiating during the Atlanta game.
With Egypt ahead 1-0 in the second half, a video assistant referee (VAR) decision disallowed Mostafa Zico’s goal after Egypt midfielder Marwan Attia was penalised for stepping on Lisandro Martínez’s foot at the outset of the move. Egypt also contends that Mohamed Salah was fouled inside the Argentina penalty area, just before the reigning champions launched a stoppage-time counter that produced the winner in a 3-2 victory.
An EFA statement quoted Hany Abou Rida, the federation president, as saying he had filed a complaint with FIFA, demanding an investigation into French referee Francois Letexier following what it described as serious refereeing errors by the match officials and alleged double standards that cost Egypt the match and an exit from the World Cup. The EFA called for scrutiny of both the refereeing crew and the video technology referees, asserting there were “blatant errors” and that certain footage had not been reviewed. It demanded the exclusion of the referee and the entire officiating team from the World Cup after an investigation into these mistakes, and it alleged “the crime of discrimination against the Egyptian national team.”
Egypt has never advanced to the World Cup quarter-finals. Argentina captain Lionel Messi, potentially competing in his final World Cup, assisted the first goal in the 79th minute and then converted an equaliser in the 83rd. After the match, Egypt’s manager Hossam Hassan said the team had been “treated unfairly” and had “suffered injustice,” suggesting that the world champions might have been kept in the competition for commercial or symbolic reasons. “Perhaps they wanted to keep the world champion in the competition. Perhaps they wanted Messi to stay in the running,” Hassan said.
Marcos Zico, not to be confused with a separate football figure, described the officiating as “really unfair” and “the injustice was clear,” claiming there had been unfairness from the start of the match and suggesting the tournament had been fixed. The EFA confirmed that Hassan’s contract as national team manager, in place since February 2024, has been extended. Argentina are set to play Switzerland in Kansas City on Saturday (02:00 BST, Sunday).
BBC Sport has approached FIFA for a comment. Historically, protests against referees and their decisions at the World Cup rarely lead to concrete results. While the referees’ committee might, in some cases, issue discreetly favorable outcomes for officials, formal complaints often receive limited attention. For instance, at the 2022 World Cup, France filed a protest after a stoppage-time goal against Tunisia was ruled out in a controversial VAR review that many viewers felt did not adhere to established VAR protocols. FIFA typically responds to such protests with concise statements that dismiss the appeal, leaving little room for substantial changes or public accountability.
This latest development from the Egyptian side underscores ongoing tensions surrounding refereeing decisions at major tournaments and raises questions about the transparency and consistency of officiating at the World Cup level. As the sporting world awaits FIFA’s response, attention will likely turn to the broader debate over VAR implementation, referee selection, and the standards applied to match officiating at the highest level of international football.