The internet was ready to burn it all down. Argentina pulled off a stunning 3-2 comeback against Egypt in the 2026 World Cup Round of 16, scoring two goals in the second half before snatching a late winner. But for a solid chunk of the audience, the story wasn’t about Lionel Messi’s men finding a way through. It was about the guy in the middle.
Egypt led 2-0 at halftime. They looked in control. Then Argentina found some cracks, and within 20 minutes the game was tied. The winner came late, and with it came a flood of angry posts. Fans called the game rigged. Egypt’s bench was furious. Players and staff got yellow cards during the match. A couple of controversial calls — a potential foul not given, a tight offside flag that killed an Egyptian attack — turned the final whistle into a digital battleground.
Collina responds without sugarcoating
Pierluigi Collina, FIFA’s chief refereeing officer, addressed the backlash in an interview with FIFA’s official site. The legendary Italian referee didn’t dodge it. He acknowledged that with 50 percent more matches played compared to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, some things will slip. “Overall, we are happy,” Collina said. “But with such a high number of matches played in a relatively short period of time, it is normal that some things do not go as expected.”
He said officials are ready to work harder ahead of the quarterfinals. But then he went further.
Collina made it clear that questioning the integrity of match officials is a problem. “Nobody can question the integrity of the FIFA World Cup match officials,” he said. “When this happens, it may provoke reactions that lead to threats against them and their families. This is not right.” He also knocked down the idea that any official could be influenced — even by FIFA president Gianni Infantino. According to Collina, Infantino has consistently backed the refereeing team while letting them work independently.
What happens next
The conspiracy theories aren’t going away overnight. But Collina’s job here was to draw a line. He said unfounded allegations have no place in the sport. And honestly, that’s probably as close to a mic drop as you get from FIFA’s refereeing department.
Argentina now faces Switzerland in the quarterfinals on July 11 at Kansas City Stadium. Egypt heads home wondering what might have been, and wondering why a few calls went the other way. They won’t get an answer they’ll like. They rarely do.
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