‘Kick Argentina out of the World Cup’: Why a five-million-signature petition has sparked a FIFA refereeing controversy

Argentina’s World Cup campaign has been surrounded by controversy after millions of fans signed an online petition demanding that the defending champions be removed from the tournament, alleging that referees and FIFA have shown favouritism toward Lionel Messi and his team.

The petition, hosted on ArgentinaOut.com, claims that Argentina has received unfair advantages from match officials and argues that other teams are not competing on an equal footing. However, there is currently no official evidence proving that FIFA or referees have intentionally favoured Argentina, and football’s governing body has not announced any action against the team.

“It is obvious that Fifa and the referees are biased toward Lionel Messi and Argentina. Why should the rest of the world compete when the winner has already been decided? Kick Argentina out of the World Cup and give everyone else a fair chance,” the petition read according to SCMP.

The controversy behind Argentina’s win over Egypt

The main source of anger came after Argentina defeated Egypt in a dramatic comeback.

Argentina trailed 2-0 before scoring three goals in the final 13 minutes of the match to secure victory. However, Egypt questioned two key refereeing decisions that involved VAR.

Egypt argued that a goal scored by them was disallowed after a review for an earlier foul, while Argentina’s late winning goal was allowed to stand despite claims of a foul during the build-up.

Egypt manager Hossam Hassan strongly criticised the officiating after the match saying “I’ll say what I think, regardless of the consequences. This has clearly been rigged, and everyone has seen it. If they want them to win so badly, why are they inviting everyone to participate in the World Cup?”

He argued that the application of VAR appeared inconsistent and that Egypt had been denied a fair opportunity.

Argentina dismisses allegations of FIFA favouritism

Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni rejected claims that his team has benefited from special treatment.

Speaking about the accusations, Scaloni said that favouritism would be extremely difficult in the modern game because VAR allows controversial moments to be reviewed in detail.

“With VAR and all the technology we have today, it’s extremely difficult to help anyone. There is no room for different interpretations.”

He pointed out that Argentina has faced similar accusations throughout its history, including during its famous 1986 World Cup victory.

According to Scaloni, criticism has increased because Argentina is one of football’s biggest teams and Messi remains one of the sport’s most recognised figures.

Amid the controversy, Argentina’s focus now turns to one of the biggest matches of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, a semi-final clash against England. The two footballing giants will meet on Wednesday, July 15, 2026, at Atlanta Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia.

The match is scheduled to kick off at 3:00 PM local time (ET), 8:00 PM in the UK, and 12:30 AM IST on Thursday, July 16 for Indian viewers.