Egypt is not going quietly. After a wild 3-2 loss to Argentina in the World Cup’s round of 16, the Pharaohs and their coach Hossam Hassan are pointing fingers at referee Francois Letexier and the broader tournament setup. Hassan went as far as to say he’ll never watch another World Cup game. The accusation? The whole thing is rigged in favor of Lionel Messi’s squad.
Here’s what happened: Egypt was up 2-0 late in the second half. Then Argentina staged a comeback that felt inevitable to some and completely unjust to others. Goals from Julian Alvarez and a late equalizer set the stage for Enzo Fernandez to head home a winner in stoppage time. But the controversy came before that decisive goal. Egypt wanted a foul called on the play. They didn’t get it. Argentina countered and scored.
Earlier, Egypt had a goal disallowed that looked like it could have stood. Mostafa Ziko thought he had put his team up 1-0, but the flag went up. Replays showed it was close. Mohamed Salah also believed he was dragged down in the box for a penalty. No whistle. No VAR review. That second incident, in particular, left the Egyptian bench screaming.
Hassan didn’t hold back in his postgame interviews. He told beIN Sports, via France24, that the refereeing was so bad he’s done with the tournament entirely. “I told the referee that what was happening wasn’t fair. It’s an undeserved victory for Argentina. Once I’m back in my country and at home, I’ll never watch the World Cup again, because there’s no justice in this competition.”
He also brought up the kickoff time. Egypt played at noon Eastern Time in Atlanta. The stadium has air conditioning, so heat wasn’t the issue. But Hassan still hated it. “Whoever schedules these matches is someone who has never played football. You never schedule a football match at 12 noon,” he said.
Ziko, speaking through a translator to Canadian broadcaster TSN, was more emotional but just as direct. “It was not fair from the referee. It was really not fair, that was very clear. He wasted all of our efforts with his decisions.” He finished with a line that’s already getting attention online: “The cup is directed towards Argentina.”
Argentina will move on to face whoever comes next. But this game leaves a sour taste for Egypt and maybe for anyone who watched a match that could have gone the other way. Hassan made it clear he sees a pattern. “The world champions benefited from support at every level,” he said.
Whether you buy the conspiracy or not, the emotion is real. Egypt came to play. They had Argentina on the ropes. And they left feeling like they got jobbed. That kind of frustration doesn’t fade overnight.
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