09.07.2026, 09:50 Uhr
FIFA referee chief Pierluigi Collina has defended French match official François Letexier against harsh criticism from Egypt and also backed referees in general at the World Cup.
"Unfounded allegations have no place in our sport. Nobody can question the integrity of the FIFA World Cup match officials," Collina said in an interview on the FIFA website.
"When this happens, it may provoke reactions that lead to threats against them and their families. This is not right.
"Nobody can claim that FIFA Refereeing can be influenced by anyone, not even by the FIFA President [Gianni Infantino]. He has always shown his full support for FIFA Team One while trusting us to work with complete independence.
"Match officials make honest decisions and, just like players and coaches, they always try to do their best."
There have been a few controversial referee decisions at the tournament and Egypt's FA formally complained against Letexier and his team after their 3-2 defeat against Argentina in the round of 16, calling for their exclusion from the tournament.
Egypt were upset that a goal from their player Mostafa Ziko was nullified because of a foul in the build-up and two incidents before Argentina's late winner when Letexier did not award an Egypt penalty when Hamdi Fathi was pulled and Mohamed Salah went down.
Collina spoke of "normal football contact" between Salah and Julián Alvarez after Alvarez played the ball first while Marwan Attia "clearly treads on the foot" of Lisandro Martínez before the Egypt goal.
"After every goal is scored, the VAR checks the attacking possession phase (APP). If a foul is identified in the build-up and is deemed to have had an impact on the goal, the VAR will recommend an on-field review," Collina said.
"There is no defined limit regarding either the distance from goal or the amount of time between the incident and the goal.
"We believe that a foul is a foul. Regardless of whether the foul appears 'obvious', if the referee did not see it on the field of play, the VAR can intervene."
Source: Dpa-international.com
