New Delhi, July 10:
FIFA chief refereeing officer Pierluigi Collina has firmly defended the integrity and independence of match officials at the 2026 FIFA World Cup following criticism over Argentina’s dramatic 3-2 Round of 16 victory against Egypt.
The response comes after the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) called for an investigation into the officiating and demanded the removal of the refereeing team following two controversial second-half decisions.
“Nobody can question the integrity of the FIFA World Cup match officials. When this happens, it may provoke reactions that lead to threats against them and their families. This is not right,” Collina told BBC Sport.
While acknowledging that refereeing decisions will always be debated, Collina stressed that “unfounded allegations have no place in our sport.” He also dismissed suggestions that FIFA’s refereeing department could be influenced externally, insisting that even FIFA president Gianni Infantino has no role in influencing match officials.
Explaining the controversial decisions, Collina said Egypt’s disallowed goal was correctly overturned after VAR detected a foul by Marwan Attia on Lisandro Martínez during the attacking phase. He reiterated that “a foul is a foul” and VAR is entitled to intervene if the referee misses a clear infringement. Collina also defended the decision not to award Egypt a late penalty following a challenge involving Mohamed Salah and Julián Álvarez, saying both the referee and VAR deemed it “normal football contact” after the defender had played the ball.
Although he acknowledged that officiating inevitably involves an element of subjectivity, Collina expressed satisfaction with how referees and VAR officials have applied the Laws of the Game throughout the tournament.“Of course, there will always be an element of subjectivity in some decisions, but we are happy with how this principle has been applied throughout the tournament,” he said.