Egypt coach Hossam Hassan expressed his frustration over match officials following his team’s stunning 3-2 loss to Argentina. Hassan said officials treated his team unfairly and “suffered an injustice” in the round of 16 match at Atlanta. Egypt held a 2-0 lead until Argentina’s Cristian Romero scored in the 79th minute. Lionel Messi tied it four minutes later. Enzo Fernandez scored the game-winner two minutes into stoppage time. Therefore, Hassan’s Egypt referee complaint centered on several controversial decisions.
Hassan took issue with referee Francois Letexier on multiple counts. Egypt had a goal initially putting them up 2-0, but VAR review disallowed it. Additionally, Letexier refused to review a hard tackle in the penalty box late in stoppage time. Therefore, Hassan’s Egypt referee complaint focused on both decisions that went against his team.
“I’m not convinced with this outcome. I’m not convinced with the way things unfolded during this match,” Hassan said firmly. “Officials treated us unfairly today. We suffered injustice.” He refused to use diplomatic language when discussing the match. Furthermore, Hassan said Egypt had objected to Letexier being the referee, referring to his “background.” Letexier is from France, and Hassan implied this influenced the officiating.
Nine minutes into extra time, Letexier issued Hassan a yellow card after he objected to the lack of a VAR review. “I was just saying this is unfair. I was saying maybe he’s carrying a scar,” Hassan said of their interaction. “Maybe he has something to hide. Whoever has something to hide sometimes fails to hide what he is hiding.” His comments suggested he believed the referee deliberately ignored controversial incidents.
As drama intensified, Letexier issued a red card to one of Hassan’s staff members. By the end of the match, officials had given Egypt five yellow cards while Argentina received none. Therefore, the card distribution appeared decidedly unbalanced. Hassan vowed not to watch another match during the 2026 World Cup. “We looked better compared to the reigning champions,” Hassan said. “We were better in everything, but the result reflected internal and external factors.”
Hassan also questioned the noon start time in Atlanta for the match. The only other round of 16 match that day was Colombia versus Switzerland at 4 p.m. ET in Vancouver. “I dare to say that whoever schedules those matches never played football,” Hassan said. “You never schedule a football match for 12 p.m., at noon. When are the players supposed to eat?”
Despite his team holding a two-goal advantage late into the match, Hassan questioned broader fairness in the sport. “Ordinary life is unfair, OK, but why isn’t there any fairness in sports? Within football,” he asked rhetorically. “So many things deserve questioning on and off the pitch. Negative aspects surround everything.” His Egypt referee complaint extended beyond individual decisions to systemic fairness concerns.
Hassan concluded with mixed sentiments about his squad’s performance. “I’m proud of my players. But we have not received what we deserve.” Therefore, while Hassan acknowledged his team’s quality, he attributed the loss to external factors beyond player control. Finally, his Egypt referee complaint represents one of the tournament’s most vocal post-match criticisms of officiating.
