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"Egypt team taunted Argentina team after the match" "Egypt's opponent today is FIFA"? Egypt's head coach criticizes unfair refereeing
In the Round of 16 match of the US-Canada-Mexico World Cup on the 8th, Argentina, once trailing by two goals, scored three goals in the last 13 minutes to come back and defeat Egypt 3-2, narrowly advancing to the quarterfinals.
This was the first meeting between Argentina and Egypt on the World Cup stage. Both teams had tough battles in the previous round: Argentina narrowly defeated Cape Verde 3-2 after extra time, while Egypt eliminated Australia only through a penalty shootout. Data shows that before this match, Argentina had won eight consecutive matches against African teams in the World Cup.
Egypt's team and fans collectively questioned the referee's bias, claiming "the opponent is the entire FIFA." Controversies include Egypt's goal by Qiku being disallowed after they led 2-0, a suspected penalty for Salah being overlooked, VAR not intervening in key decisions, and Egyptian players receiving frequent yellow cards for protests.—Just 15 minutes into the match, Egyptian center-back Ibrahim scored first, making it 1-0. In the 19th minute, Argentina was awarded a penalty, but Messi's spot kick was brilliantly saved by Egyptian goalkeeper Shobeir—at that moment, it seemed fate itself was favoring Egypt. A bigger controversy came in the 58th minute. Egypt launched a quick counterattack; Salah threaded a through ball, and Qiku slotted home. Qiku excitedly removed his shirt in celebration, and Egyptian fans were ready to celebrate a 2-0 lead. However, VAR intervened—referee Letexier reviewed and found that at the start of the same attacking sequence, Egyptian player Atia had stepped on Argentine defender Lisandro Martínez. The referee ruled a foul in the buildup, disallowing the goal. This left the entire Egyptian team in shock. Journalist Rob Harris commented: "Although this complies with VAR rules, the original intention of introducing this technology to football was not for this—to go back so far in time to review a minor tackle on the other side of the pitch." Chelsea correspondent Kinsella bluntly said: "The referee's decision against Egypt on this was incredibly harsh."
Yet Egypt was not defeated. Just 8 minutes later, Qiku scored again, giving Egypt a 2-0 lead! The Pharaohs were just one step away from making history. In the 79th minute, Argentine center-back Romero scored a header to pull one back. In the 83rd minute, Messi equalized with a volley. 2-2, the match was back to square one.
The real storm came in stoppage time. In the 90+2 minute, Lautaro crossed, and Enzo Fernández scored a header for the winner! Argentina scored three goals in the last 11 minutes of regular time and stoppage time, completing a stunning comeback.
However, Egyptian players protested furiously: before this Argentine attack, Salah appeared to be fouled by an Argentine player in the penalty area and went down, but the referee showed no reaction, and VAR did not intervene. Egypt believed that if that foul had been called, not only should Argentina's winning goal be disallowed, but Egypt should also have been awarded a penalty. After confirming the winning goal, referee Letexier issued six yellow cards to the Egyptian team in quick succession, and a coaching staff member was sent off with a red card for protesting.
The Egyptians' anger was not unfounded. Throughout the match, the referee's officiating standards showed a "double standard" unacceptable to Egypt:
First, the time span for backtracking on goals. Egypt's goal was disallowed because of a tackle on the other side of the pitch that occurred before the goal. Journalist Harris pointed out: "The referee had already witnessed that tackle." In other words, the referee did not call a foul at the time, allowing play to continue, but then "dug up old accounts" to cancel the goal after Egypt scored.
Second, same situation, different treatment. Before Argentina's winning goal, Salah was fouled in the penalty area, but the referee turned a blind eye, and VAR remained silent. Egyptian legend Abou Trika commented after the match: "The whole team felt from the start that the referee was targeting us. Are we playing against Messi, or against FIFA and the refereeing team?" Egyptian refereeing expert Ghandour bluntly said: "The referee started handing out yellow cards to Egyptian players while being overly lenient on Argentine players for similar fouls on multiple occasions."
After the match, Egyptian head coach Hassan unleashed a barrage of criticism at the press conference: "We were unfairly deceived today. A penalty that should have been ours was not reviewed, and another goal was disallowed. I cannot understand these decisions." He even said: "I assure you, from the moment I leave, I will not watch any more matches of this World Cup."
Hassan also directed his criticism at FIFA: "This might be a matter of commercial marketing. Maybe they want to build momentum for the World Cup, hoping the defending champion stays, hoping Messi stays." He did not mince words: "It's all about money. They want Messi to continue in this World Cup."
Egyptian forward Qiku said after the match with red eyes: "The referee performed poorly and unfairly. His unfairness was obvious; he targeted us from the start. He didn't want us to win. This was a fixed match." He sarcastically added: "Congratulations to Argentina. Looks like they'll win another World Cup."
Egyptian legend Abou Trika directly targeted FIFA President Infantino: "The 'Fair Play' slogan FIFA has always advocated has now become 'Phone Manipulation'." In contrast, Egyptian captain Salah generously comforted his teammates in the locker room, emphasizing "This is part of football." But everyone knows that 34-year-old Salah may never have another World Cup.
This controversy is not an isolated incident. At the 2026 World Cup, FIFA's controversial decisions have already sparked outrage more than once.
"Pardon" of US forward Balogun. On July 1, in the match between the US and Bosnia and Herzegovina, US forward Balogun stamped on an opponent's ankle; after VAR intervention, he was directly sent off with a red card. According to the rules, he should have been automatically suspended for one match. However, on July 5, FIFA announced that Balogun's suspension would be "deferred for one year." This meant Balogun became the first player in World Cup history to continue playing after receiving a red card. Belgium's head coach denounced this decision at a pre-match press conference as "violating the bottom line of football fairness," and UEFA also issued a statement accusing FIFA of "crossing the red line." Multiple media outlets reported that US President Donald Trump personally called FIFA to exert pressure.
Expansion of VAR intervention scope. This World Cup expanded VAR intervention scenarios, including "clearly erroneous second yellow cards," "mistaken identity leading to wrong cards," "erroneous corner kick decisions," etc., all subject to VAR review. However, in practice, the criteria for VAR intervention have become increasingly vague—as demonstrated in the Egypt match: the referee could choose to backtrack a minor contact from halfway across the pitch to disallow a goal, while also turning a blind eye to a suspected penalty in the box. This "selective intervention" turns fair play into an empty phrase.
When the final whistle blew, Messi broke down in tears on the pitch. On the other side of the field, Egyptian players collapsed to the ground, unable to believe what had happened. A 2-0 lead, a historic breakthrough, the dream of defeating the defending champion—all vanished in the referee's whistle.
Egyptian head coach Hassan said something that left everyone in silence: "Life isn't always fair, and the world isn't always fair, but why can't sports competition be fair either?" This might be the heaviest question the 2026 World Cup leaves for the football world.
"Egypt team taunted Argentina team after the match" "Egypt's opponent today is FIFA"? Egypt's head coach criticizes unfair refereeing
In the Round of 16 match of the US-Canada-Mexico World Cup on the 8th, Argentina, once trailing by two goals, scored three goals in the last 13 minutes to come back and defeat Egypt 3-2, narrowly advancing to the quarterfinals.
This was the first meeting between Argentina and Egypt on the World Cup stage. Both teams had tough battles in the previous round: Argentina narrowly defeated Cape Verde 3-2 after extra time, while Egypt eliminated Australia only through a penalty shootout. Data shows that before this match, Argentina had won eight consecutive matches against African teams in the World Cup.
Egypt's team and fans collectively questioned the referee's bias, claiming "the opponent is the entire FIFA." Controversies include Egypt's goal by Qiku being disallowed after they led 2-0, a suspected penalty for Salah being overlooked, VAR not intervening in key decisions, and Egyptian players receiving frequent yellow cards for protests.—Just 15 minutes into the match, Egyptian center-back Ibrahim scored first, making it 1-0. In the 19th minute, Argentina was awarded a penalty, but Messi's spot kick was brilliantly saved by Egyptian goalkeeper Shobeir—at that moment, it seemed fate itself was favoring Egypt. A bigger controversy came in the 58th minute. Egypt launched a quick counterattack; Salah threaded a through ball, and Qiku slotted home. Qiku excitedly removed his shirt in celebration, and Egyptian fans were ready to celebrate a 2-0 lead. However, VAR intervened—referee Letexier reviewed and found that at the start of the same attacking sequence, Egyptian player Atia had stepped on Argentine defender Lisandro Martínez. The referee ruled a foul in the buildup, disallowing the goal. This left the entire Egyptian team in shock. Journalist Rob Harris commented: "Although this complies with VAR rules, the original intention of introducing this technology to football was not for this—to go back so far in time to review a minor tackle on the other side of the pitch." Chelsea correspondent Kinsella bluntly said: "The referee's decision against Egypt on this was incredibly harsh."
Yet Egypt was not defeated. Just 8 minutes later, Qiku scored again, giving Egypt a 2-0 lead! The Pharaohs were just one step away from making history. In the 79th minute, Argentine center-back Romero scored a header to pull one back. In the 83rd minute, Messi equalized with a volley. 2-2, the match was back to square one.
The real storm came in stoppage time. In the 90+2 minute, Lautaro crossed, and Enzo Fernández scored a header for the winner! Argentina scored three goals in the last 11 minutes of regular time and stoppage time, completing a stunning comeback.
However, Egyptian players protested furiously: before this Argentine attack, Salah appeared to be fouled by an Argentine player in the penalty area and went down, but the referee showed no reaction, and VAR did not intervene. Egypt believed that if that foul had been called, not only should Argentina's winning goal be disallowed, but Egypt should also have been awarded a penalty. After confirming the winning goal, referee Letexier issued six yellow cards to the Egyptian team in quick succession, and a coaching staff member was sent off with a red card for protesting.
The Egyptians' anger was not unfounded. Throughout the match, the referee's officiating standards showed a "double standard" unacceptable to Egypt:
First, the time span for backtracking on goals. Egypt's goal was disallowed because of a tackle on the other side of the pitch that occurred before the goal. Journalist Harris pointed out: "The referee had already witnessed that tackle." In other words, the referee did not call a foul at the time, allowing play to continue, but then "dug up old accounts" to cancel the goal after Egypt scored.
Second, same situation, different treatment. Before Argentina's winning goal, Salah was fouled in the penalty area, but the referee turned a blind eye, and VAR remained silent. Egyptian legend Abou Trika commented after the match: "The whole team felt from the start that the referee was targeting us. Are we playing against Messi, or against FIFA and the refereeing team?" Egyptian refereeing expert Ghandour bluntly said: "The referee started handing out yellow cards to Egyptian players while being overly lenient on Argentine players for similar fouls on multiple occasions."
After the match, Egyptian head coach Hassan unleashed a barrage of criticism at the press conference: "We were unfairly deceived today. A penalty that should have been ours was not reviewed, and another goal was disallowed. I cannot understand these decisions." He even said: "I assure you, from the moment I leave, I will not watch any more matches of this World Cup."
Hassan also directed his criticism at FIFA: "This might be a matter of commercial marketing. Maybe they want to build momentum for the World Cup, hoping the defending champion stays, hoping Messi stays." He did not mince words: "It's all about money. They want Messi to continue in this World Cup."
Egyptian forward Qiku said after the match with red eyes: "The referee performed poorly and unfairly. His unfairness was obvious; he targeted us from the start. He didn't want us to win. This was a fixed match." He sarcastically added: "Congratulations to Argentina. Looks like they'll win another World Cup."
Egyptian legend Abou Trika directly targeted FIFA President Infantino: "The 'Fair Play' slogan FIFA has always advocated has now become 'Phone Manipulation'." In contrast, Egyptian captain Salah generously comforted his teammates in the locker room, emphasizing "This is part of football." But everyone knows that 34-year-old Salah may never have another World Cup.
This controversy is not an isolated incident. At the 2026 World Cup, FIFA's controversial decisions have already sparked outrage more than once.
"Pardon" of US forward Balogun. On July 1, in the match between the US and Bosnia and Herzegovina, US forward Balogun stamped on an opponent's ankle; after VAR intervention, he was directly sent off with a red card. According to the rules, he should have been automatically suspended for one match. However, on July 5, FIFA announced that Balogun's suspension would be "deferred for one year." This meant Balogun became the first player in World Cup history to continue playing after receiving a red card. Belgium's head coach denounced this decision at a pre-match press conference as "violating the bottom line of football fairness," and UEFA also issued a statement accusing FIFA of "crossing the red line." Multiple media outlets reported that US President Donald Trump personally called FIFA to exert pressure.
Expansion of VAR intervention scope. This World Cup expanded VAR intervention scenarios, including "clearly erroneous second yellow cards," "mistaken identity leading to wrong cards," "erroneous corner kick decisions," etc., all subject to VAR review. However, in practice, the criteria for VAR intervention have become increasingly vague—as demonstrated in the Egypt match: the referee could choose to backtrack a minor contact from halfway across the pitch to disallow a goal, while also turning a blind eye to a suspected penalty in the box. This "selective intervention" turns fair play into an empty phrase.
When the final whistle blew, Messi broke down in tears on the pitch. On the other side of the field, Egyptian players collapsed to the ground, unable to believe what had happened. A 2-0 lead, a historic breakthrough, the dream of defeating the defending champion—all vanished in the referee's whistle.
Egyptian head coach Hassan said something that left everyone in silence: "Life isn't always fair, and the world isn't always fair, but why can't sports competition be fair either?" This might be the heaviest question the 2026 World Cup leaves for the football world.
