Egypt FA demands FIFA investigation, calls for referees removal after World Cup defeat to Argentina

The Egyptian Football Association (EFA) has formally lodged a complaint with FIFA, demanding an investigation into the officiating of Egypt's dramatic 3-2 defeat to Argentina in the Round of 16 of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

The EFA is calling for the removal of the entire match officiating team from the tournament, alleging serious refereeing errors and inconsistent use of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) that it believes contributed to Egypt's elimination.

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The controversy centred on two key incidents during the match in Atlanta.

With Egypt leading in the second half, Mostafa Zico thought he had doubled his side's advantage, only for the goal to be ruled out after VAR reviewed the build-up and penalised midfielder Marwan Attia for stepping on Lisandro Martínez's foot.

Moments later, Egypt appealed for a penalty after Mohamed Salah appeared to be fouled inside Argentina's penalty area. However, play continued, and Argentina launched the counter-attack that eventually led to Enzo Fernández's dramatic stoppage-time winner.

The defeat ended Egypt's hopes of reaching the FIFA World Cup quarter-finals for the first time in their history.

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In a statement, the Egyptian Football Association confirmed that its president, Hany Abou Rida, had officially submitted a complaint to FIFA over the performance of French referee François Letexier and his officiating team.

"Hany Abou Rida, president of the Egyptian Football Association, filed a complaint with FIFA, demanding an investigation into the French referee François Letexier after the serious refereeing mistakes committed by the team of referees and double standards, which caused the Egypt team to lose the match and leave the World Cup."

The EFA said it wants FIFA to investigate both the on-field officials and the VAR team, accusing them of making "blatant errors" and failing to review crucial incidents during the game.

The federation further called for the referee and the entire officiating crew to be removed from the remainder of the tournament after the investigation.

It also alleged what it described as "discrimination against the Egyptian national team".

Following the match, Egypt head coach Hossam Hassan expressed frustration with the refereeing, claiming his side had been unfairly treated.

"Perhaps they wanted to keep the world champion in the competition. Perhaps they wanted Messi to stay in the running," he said.

Forward Mostafa Zico also criticised the officiating after the match.

"The referee was really unfair. The injustice was clear. There's been an unfairness right from the start of the match."

"It is clear that this tournament has been fixed."

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Despite trailing by two goals late in the match, defending champions Argentina completed a remarkable comeback to win 3-2.

Captain Lionel Messi inspired the turnaround by providing the assist for Cristian Romero's goal before scoring the equaliser himself. Enzo Fernández then headed home the dramatic winner in stoppage time to send Argentina into the quarter-finals.

Argentina will now face Switzerland in the last eight as they continue their bid to successfully defend the FIFA World Cup title.