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Egypt’s VAR goal overturned
Egypt’s national team said it was “robbed” after a controversial VAR decision overturned a goal in its 3-2 Round of 16 loss to Argentina on Tuesday, a match in which Argentina scored three unanswered goals between the 79th and 93rd minutes.
“The clamour surrounding the World Cup’s controversy involving US President Donald Trump and FIFA chief Gianni Infantino had barely died down when another arose in the aftermath of Argentina’s controversial 3-2 win over Egypt in the round-of-16 match in Atlanta”
The disputed moment came when Egypt’s midfielder Mostafa Zico had a goal overturned in the 58th minute, with the ruling that Egyptian midfielder Marawan Attia fouled Argentina defender Lisandro Martínez prior to the goal.
Former England goalkeeper Rob Green said during the broadcast, “Surely, this is not within VAR’s [realm] to review this,” adding, “It’s a full length of the pitch away.”
Egypt’s coach Hossam Hassan and players criticized the officiating after the VAR review, and the Egyptian Football Association said it “cannot remain silent” about what it believed was unfair and biased officiating.
The Daily Gazette reported that the EFA said the referee failed to use VAR appropriately, and that “Several key incidents raised serious concerns” about consistency and fairness in decisions that influenced the match.
Officials, federation, and debate
The Egyptian Football Association said it would not stay quiet after the match, framing its complaint around the “failure to make appropriate use of the Video Assistant Referee [VAR] system,” while the BBC described Egypt’s fury as accusations of “injustice” and Messi favoritism claims.
Hossam Hassan told reporters, “We have been treated unfairly today,” and added, “We have suffered injustice.”
The Daily Gazette also reported that Egypt’s goalkeeping coach Saafan Elsaghir was red-carded and several yellow cards were dished out to Egyptian players after the final goal.
In a separate reaction, Al Jazeera reported that Hassan speculated match officials had been put under pressure to ensure that one of the biggest names, Argentina’s Lionel Messi, stayed in the tournament, saying, “Perhaps they wanted Messi to stay in the running.”
Al Jazeera also quoted football analyst Ali El Garni saying, “Robbed might be a strong word,” and argued that decisions could have gone either way with Argentina benefitting from “all the 50/50 incidents.”
What happens next
After the match, the Egyptian Football Association said it would raise concerns about refereeing decisions and VAR use, and the Daily Gazette reported that the federation’s statement expressed frustration among Egypt players, staff and supporters.
“Egypt seething after squandering a two-goal lead and losing 3-2 to Messi’s Argentina at World Cup Egypt seething after squandering a two-goal lead and losing 3-2 to Messi’s Argentina at World Cup ATLANTA (AP) — For Mohamed Salah and Egypt, what could have been a glorious celebration turned ugly at the end”
The BBC said Egypt’s head coach Hassan vowed, “I promise you, from the moment I go back, I’m not going to continue following the matches of this FIFA World Cup,” as he described his “internal fight” and “internal objection.”
CNN reported that Hassan said, “We have been treated unfairly today,” and “We have suffered injustice,” while also citing Egypt’s claim that a penalty was ruled out and that a second ball should have been checked by VAR.
In the political spotlight around the tournament, Al Jazeera noted that the controversy involving US President Donald Trump and FIFA chief Gianni Infantino had “barely died down,” and it connected that earlier dispute to Egypt’s outburst over the Argentina match.
Meanwhile, BroBible said New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani backed Egypt’s claim, stating that Egypt were “robbed,” and Hindustan Times reported that Mamdani’s remarks came as he spoke to New Yorkers about his “Next Stop: Better Buses, Faster Service” programme.
