Egypt head coach Hossam Hassan has criticised French referee François Letexier after Egypt were knocked out of the 2026 World Cup by Argentina, claiming the team suffered an “unjust defeat” because of efforts to keep Lionel Messi and the defending champions in the tournament, Anadolu reports.
Speaking at a press conference after Egypt’s 3-2 defeat to Argentina in the round of 16 on Tuesday, Hassan said the match lacked refereeing fairness and suggested that Argentina had received support for “marketing” reasons.
“We suffered an unjust defeat,” Hassan said. “There is support from every side for the world champions — marketing support. They want the previous World Cup champions to remain in the tournament. They want Messi to stay.”
Hassan said Egypt lost for “marketing” reasons, arguing that the match was not handled fairly by the referee.
Egypt forward Mostafa Ziko also criticised the officiating after the match, saying in televised remarks while in tears that the referee had “wasted the effort of an entire country”.
