Richard Sellers/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images
NYC Mayor Mamdani said that Egypt were "robbed" against Argentina
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has weighed in on the controversial decision to overturn one of the goals that Egypt scored against Argentina in their Round of 16 matchup on Tuesday. Mayor Mamdani said that Egypt were “robbed.”
Defending World Cup champions Lionel Messi and Argentina mounted a comeback victory over Mohamed Salah and Egypt, scoring three unanswered goals between the 79th and 93rd minutes to win the match 3-2. Earlier in the second half, however, Egypt had a goal by midfielder Mostafa Zico overturned in the 58th minute that would’ve given them a 2-0 lead (Egypt did score a second goal in the 67th minute to take that same advantage).
The decision to overturn the call — it was ultimately ruled that Egyptian midfielder Marawan Attia fouled Argentina defender Lisandro Martínez prior to the goal — was controversial, as both analysts and soccer fans felt that the foul occurred far enough before the goal that the two incidents should not have been connected by VAR. Making the incident even more contentious was the fact that Egypt’s goal would’ve been one of the best team goals of the tournament.
After review, Egypt is called for a foul and the goal is disallowed. pic.twitter.com/9KJiFgVjMI — FOX Sports (@FOXSports) July 7, 2026
“Surely, this is not within VAR’s [realm] to review this,” former England goalkeeper and longtime color analyst Rob Green said during the broadcast. “It’s a full length of the pitch away.”
VAR review of a foul 100 yards away erases a second Egypt goal vs. Argentina, as seen and heard on the Fox broadcast. #WorldCup pic.twitter.com/NMGuL1zbUS https://t.co/VFBcSpZVNW — Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) July 7, 2026
After he escaped a red card for the same thing that USMNT striker Folarin Balogun was penalized for, there was already a growing narrative about FIFA showing preferential treatment to Argentina and Messi. That debate came to a boiling point after the Argentina match, when Zico — who had his goal chalked off — accused the World Cup of being “rigged.”
“Congratulations to Argentina on the World Cup; the tournament was rigged, they didn’t need anything else. The referee was unfair, unfair, unfair, unfair,” he said. “The cup is being given to Argentina.”
Egypt’s manager Hossam Hassan had a similar stance and also used the word “rigged” in his post match comments.
“I will say what’s on my mind regardless of the consequence, this was clearly a rigged match and the whole world saw it. And I want to say one more thing, if they want them [Argentina] to win so bad, why call everyone to come and participate?”
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani believes that Egypt were “robbed” in their 2026 World Cup Round of 16 match against Argentina
Members of the Egypt national team clearly think they were robbed, and so does Mayor Mamdani, as he mentioned the incident during an event the day after the match.
“Now, if you take the bus to work, that adds up fast. Within six months, you will have spent twenty-four fewer hours on the bus. By the time a year rolls around, you’ll have saved more than two days of commuting time,” Mamdani said at an event for Next Stop: Fast Buses, Better Service, his plan to speed up the New York City bus system.
“That means breakfast with your family. It means having the time to argue balls and strikes at your kids’ little league game. It means getting home for bedtime. It means agreeing with your friends that Egypt were robbed yesterday.”
🚨🇦🇷 NEW: NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani says that Egypt were “robbed” in yesterday’s World Cup game against Argentina pic.twitter.com/bigWXCN04q — Politics Global (@PolitlcsGlobal) July 8, 2026
Reporter: I’d love to commiserate with you on how Egypt was robbed— Mamdani: I mean if you’re going to call a foul on the first disallowed goal— pic.twitter.com/ciBx4Jx4KC — Acyn (@Acyn) July 8, 2026
According to IFAB (International Football Association Board — the independent lawmaker for the sport globally, essentially the FIFA of soccer’s rulebook), the official ruling on the situation in question is:
“For decisions/incidents relating to goals, penalty/no penalty and red cards for denying an obvious goal-scoring opportunity (DOGSO), it may be necessary to review the attacking phase of play which led directly to the decision/incident; this may include how the attacking team gained possession of the ball in open play.”
That last sentence is key, as it’s likely what led officials to rule in Argentina’s favor. Although it occured on the other end of the pitch Egypt did gain possession through what the officials ultimately determined to be a foul by Attia on Martinez.
Still, while the application of the law may be subjective, its intent isn’t. Not only did Green disagree with the call on the commentary, but so did former Premier League official Graham Scott, per The Athletic, who said the decision was wrong because he did not believe the contact by Attia warranted a foul:
“Attia’s challenge on Lisandro Martinez in the build-up to Ziko’s 67th-minute effort was normal contact and should be regarded as such, rather than considered a foul. It was also almost 100 yards from goal, and Argentina had every opportunity to regroup and defend — no wonder Egypt felt aggrieved that the eventual goal was disallowed after a VAR review.”
This is where accusations of favoritism come in. In baseball, when there’s a tie between the runner and the fielder, it goes to the runner. Many soccer fans around the world believe that close calls at the World Cup are being decided in favor of Argentina and Messi, whether they warrant it or not.
Source: BroBible
