FIFA explained why Egypt’s goal was disallowed in the match against Argentina, and Salah’s shot was not counted.

The International Football Federation (FIFA) has issued an official clarification on the most controversial refereeing cases in the clash between Egypt and Argentina, which ended in a 3-2 victory for the tango dancers in the final of the 2026 World Cup, after a wave of criticism surrounding the decisions of French referee Letis.

The match was marred by controversy after Egypt’s goal was disallowed for a foul early in the attack, in addition to the Pharaohs claiming a penalty for Mohamed Salah seconds before the Argentines’ third goal, sparking widespread protests from players and Egypt’s coaching staff.

In an attempt to put an end to the controversy, Italy’s Pierluigi Collina, the chairman of FIFA’s referees’ committee, came out to explain the refereeing basis on which the decisions were based, stressing that the video technology applied the established protocol in both cases.

Colina: Egypt’s goal was therefore disallowed

Colina explained that the international federation is not used to commenting on individual cases during tournaments, but it saw the need to clarify some points due to the volume of controversy that arose.

He said crossly Official FIFA websiteToday, Thursday: “We usually don’t like to comment on specific refereeing incidents during tournaments, but we recently found out how referees deal with players trying to obstruct goalkeepers, so we felt the need to clarify another point that has generated a lot of discussion.”

Explaining how the video technology works, he added: “After any goal is scored, the video referee reviews the entire offensive possession phase. If a foul is detected during the formation of the attack and it directly affects the goal, the video referee recommends that the referee review the screen image.

He emphasized that the VAR protocol does not specify a specific distance or time for the review, saying:

Colina said about the canceled goal kick of the Egyptians. “Egyptian player Marwan Attia apparently ran over Lisandro Martinez’s leg during Argentina-Egypt match”.

He added: “From our point of view, a foul remains a foul, no matter how obvious it is, if the referee doesn’t see it on the field, the video referee has the right to intervene.

Why wasn’t a penalty awarded to Mohamed Salah’s goal?

The head of the FIFA Refereeing Committee also referred to the moment when the Egyptian team called for a penalty to be awarded to Mohamed Salah before Argentina’s third goal.

He said: “If no violation is detected during the build-up of the attack leading to the goal, the video referee informs the referee about it.

“Tramping the opponent’s leg is considered a foul, but if the defender first touches the ball, and then there is natural contact, then there is no foul.”

He emphasized that this comment refers to Salah’s clash with Julian Alvarez, saying: “The referee and the video referee considered that the contact between Mohamed Salah and Julian Alvarez was a normal contact in football.”

And it was revealed Official FIFA website A new photographic angle of the challenge, he said, shows Alvarez managed to play the ball first before making contact with the Egypt captain.

He added that Salah did not continue to call for the penalty, but quickly got up and returned to defensive support before Argentina counter-attacked to score the winning goal.

Colina: Some decisions will still be subject to discretion

Colina concluded his remarks by emphasizing that some cases will remain the subject of differences of opinion, but he stressed his confidence in the performance of the referees during the tournament.

“There will always be room for personal judgment in some refereeing decisions, but we are pleased with how these principles have been applied throughout the tournament,” he said.