Egypt has officially filed a complaint with FIFA following its heartbreaking 3-2 defeat to Argentina in the Round of 16 of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The Egyptian Football Association (EFA) believes several key refereeing decisions played a major role in the outcome of the match and has asked football's governing body to investigate referee François Letexier and his entire officiating team, including the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) officials.
The complaint was announced by EFA president Hany Abo Rida, who said the federation believes Egypt was unfairly treated during one of the tournament's most dramatic knockout matches. According to the EFA, a number of important decisions went against the Pharaohs, preventing them from reaching what would have been their first-ever FIFA World Cup quarterfinal.
The controversy began early in the match when Mostafa Ziko appeared to put Egypt ahead. However, after a VAR review, the goal was ruled out because officials determined that Argentina defender Lisandro Martínez had been fouled during the build-up. Despite the setback, Egypt continued to attack and eventually found the breakthrough, with Ziko scoring later in the game to help his side establish a commanding 2-0 lead.
For much of the match, Egypt looked set to pull off one of the biggest surprises of the tournament. Argentina struggled to break down the organized Egyptian defense, while the African side continued to threaten on the counterattack. With time running out, Egypt appeared just minutes away from making history.
The momentum shifted dramatically late in the match as Argentina launched an impressive comeback. Cristian Romero pulled one goal back before Lionel Messi produced another crucial moment in his remarkable World Cup career by scoring the equalizer. The defending champions continued to press forward, and Enzo Fernández eventually scored the winning goal to complete a stunning turnaround and send Argentina into the quarterfinals.
However, Egypt believes Argentina's winning goal should never have happened. The EFA argues that just moments before Fernández found the net, midfielder Hamdy Fathy was pulled down inside the penalty area by Alexis Mac Allister. According to the federation, the incident clearly deserved a penalty kick, but the referee allowed play to continue and the VAR officials did not intervene to recommend a review.
The Egyptian federation said its official complaint requests a full investigation into the actions of the referee, assistant referees, and VAR officials throughout the match. It claims there were several significant officiating mistakes and inconsistent decisions that affected the flow of the game. The EFA has also asked FIFA to remove the entire refereeing crew from the remainder of the World Cup if the investigation confirms that serious errors were made.
Egypt head coach Hossam Hassan did not hide his disappointment after the final whistle. Speaking to reporters, he questioned the fairness of the officiating and insisted his players had been denied the result they deserved.
"I do not want to put it nicely and talk about hard luck," Hassan told reporters. "We have been cheated unfairly today. We have suffered injustice."
He continued:
"We haven't seen respect or fair play."
Hassan later expanded on his comments during an interview with beIN Sports, where he suggested that factors beyond the football itself may have influenced the outcome of the match.
"Perhaps they wanted to keep the world champions in the competition. Perhaps they wanted Messi to stay in the running," he said. "In football, there are sometimes external factors that go beyond the technical aspects. The world champions received support at every level."
His remarks have sparked widespread debate among football fans and analysts, with some agreeing that Egypt had legitimate reasons to question several decisions, while others argued that Argentina simply produced a brilliant comeback when it mattered most.
The defeat brought an emotional end to Egypt's World Cup campaign after one of the country's strongest performances on the global stage in recent years. Despite the disappointment, the Pharaohs earned praise for pushing the defending champions to the limit and coming within touching distance of a historic quarterfinal appearance.
FIFA has not yet issued an official response to Egypt's complaint or indicated whether it will open a formal investigation into the officiating team. If a review takes place, it will likely examine the referee's key decisions, the role of VAR during the match, and whether the officials correctly applied the Laws of the Game.
While the result on the pitch cannot be changed, Egypt hopes its complaint will encourage greater accountability and improve officiating standards at future international tournaments. The case is expected to remain a major talking point as the World Cup continues, especially given the high-profile nature of the match and the serious allegations made by the Egyptian Football Association.
