Overview
- Argentina overturned a 0-2 deficit to beat Egypt 3-2 and advance to the World Cup quarter-finals with goals from Romero, Messi and Enzo Fernández.
- Egypt’s football association and coach Hossam Hassan filed a formal complaint and accused officials of inconsistent decisions after an Egyptian goal was annulled and a pre‑winner contact was disputed.
- Pierluigi Collina, FIFA’s head of refereeing, rejected accusations of favoritism, explained that VAR applied an attack‑phase review (APP) to detect a foul by Marwan Attia that led to the annulled goal, and said contact between Salah and Julián Álvarez was judged normal play.
- FIFA published supporting video reconstructions, warned that unfounded claims put referees at risk, reaffirmed that the sporting result stands as final, and named João Pinheiro to referee Argentina’s quarter‑final against Switzerland.
- The dispute highlights how expanded World Cup technology—including semi‑automated offside and 3D reconstructions—combined with viral media coverage can raise reputational stakes and security concerns for match officials.