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'Cannot remain silent': Egypt escalate World Cup row, file FIFA complaint against Letexier over Argentina controversy
Egyptian Football Association president Hany Abo Rida has reportedly filed an official complaint with FIFA against Letexier and his assistants.
The fallout from Argentina's dramatic 3-2 comeback win over Egypt at the FIFA World Cup has refused to die down. What began with furious scenes on the touchline and explosive post-match accusations from Egypt's players and coaching staff has now escalated into an official battle off the pitch, with the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) taking its grievance directly to FIFA.
The controversy centres on a string of refereeing decisions during Tuesday's Round-of-16 clash in Atlanta, most notably the VAR intervention that ruled out Mostafa Ziko's 58th-minute goal with Egypt already leading 1-0. Argentina survived the scare before scoring three times in the final 13 minutes to book their place in the quarterfinals, but the officiating has since become the biggest talking point from the contest. In the aftermath, Egypt's players and coaching staff alleged that the tournament was "directed towards Argentina" and claimed FIFA wanted "Lionel Messi to stay."
On Wednesday, the EFA declared that it "cannot remain silent" over what it described as questionable refereeing decisions and the use of VAR. The federation also reportedly lodged an official complaint with FIFA against referee François Letexier and his team, seeking an investigation into the officiating and requesting that the French refereeing crew be removed from the remainder of the tournament.
"The Egyptian Football Association cannot remain silent regarding the refereeing decisions witnessed during the match against Argentina, as well as the failure to make appropriate use of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system," the EFA said in a statement on Wednesday.
The biggest flashpoint came in the 58th minute when Egypt thought they had doubled their advantage through Ziko. However, after a VAR review, Letexier ruled that defender Marwan Attia had fouled Argentina's Lisandro Martínez in the build-up, and the goal was disallowed.
Egypt also believed they should have been awarded a penalty moments before Enzo Fernández's stoppage-time winner after Mohamed Salah went down inside the Argentina box. The incident sparked furious protests from the Egyptian bench, with Letexier sending off goalkeeping coach Saafan Elsaghir while also issuing multiple yellow cards to members of the coaching staff.
"Several key incidents raised serious concerns and left profound questions about the consistency and fairness of decisions that directly influenced the course of the game," the statement continued.
"What occurred during the match has understandably generated widespread frustration among our players, staff, and supporters, who expected the highest standards of officiating on football's biggest stage."
EFA lodges FIFA complaint
According to a report in Diario AS, Egyptian Football Association president Hany Abo Rida has filed an official complaint with FIFA against Letexier and his assistants. Besides demanding explanations over the controversial decisions, the complaint reportedly calls for a formal investigation into the officiating and seeks the removal of the French refereeing team from the remainder of the World Cup, arguing that their errors had a decisive impact on Egypt's elimination.
