The Egypt FA have officially filed a complaint to FIFA against the referee who officiated their round of 16 fixture vs Argentina.
The Egyptian Football Association (EFA) has officially lodged a complaint with FIFA, calling for an investigation into the officiating team following Egypt’s controversial 3-2 defeat to Argentina in the Round of 16 at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Egypt looked on course for a famous victory after racing into a two-goal lead and maintaining their advantage until the closing stages. However, the defending champions mounted a dramatic comeback, with Cristian Romero, Lionel Messi and Enzo Fernández scoring late goals to send Argentina into the quarter-finals, where they will face Switzerland.
Despite the result, much of the post-match discussion has centred on several contentious refereeing decisions that Egypt believes influenced the outcome of the match.
What happened during the Argentina v Egypt match?
The first major incident came when Mostafa Zico found the net for what would have extended Egypt’s lead, only for referee François Letexier to overturn the goal after a VAR review. The French official ruled that Lisandro Martínez had been fouled earlier in the attacking move.
Egypt’s frustrations grew later in the contest when the team appealed for a penalty after Mohamed Salah went down following a challenge from Julián Álvarez. The Egyptians also argued that Hamdi Fathy was fouled by Alexis Mac Allister in the build-up to Enzo Fernández’s decisive goal.
The EFA believes there was an inconsistent application of VAR, pointing out that Egypt’s disallowed goal was thoroughly reviewed while the incidents leading to Argentina’s winner were allowed to stand without similar intervention.
Egyptian FA files official complaint
Following the match, Egyptian Football Association president Hany Abo Rida submitted a formal complaint to FIFA requesting a review of the officiating.
According to the federation, the complaint argues that a series of refereeing errors had a significant impact on the outcome of the match and ultimately contributed to Egypt’s elimination from the World Cup.
Among the issues highlighted in the complaint are:
- The decision to disallow Mostafa Zico’s goal after a VAR review.
- The failure to award Egypt a late penalty following the challenge on Mohamed Salah.
- The absence of a VAR review before Argentina’s winning goal despite Egypt’s claims of a foul on Hamdi Fathy.
- What the federation describes as inconsistent use of VAR during decisive moments of the game.
The EFA has also asked FIFA to investigate referee François Letexier, his assistant referees and the VAR officials. In addition, the federation requested that the entire officiating crew be removed from the remainder of the tournament until the investigation is concluded.
In its statement, the Egyptian FA praised the players for their spirited performance against the reigning world champions, describing them as heroes despite the defeat. The federation also apologised to supporters, expressing disappointment that the team was unable to protect its two-goal advantage and progress to the quarter-finals.