As controversy surrounding officiating at the FIFA World Cup 2026 continues to gather pace following Argentina’s contentious Round of 16 win over Egypt, FIFA chief refereeing officer Pierluigi Collina has firmly rejected suggestions of outside influence, stating that “not even the FIFA president (Gianni Infantino)” can interfere with refereeing decisions.
The criticism erupted after Argentina’s dramatic 3-2 victory over Egypt, a match that prompted the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) to demand an investigation into the officiating and seek the removal of the refereeing team from the remainder of the tournament. Egypt’s manager Hossam Hassan also claimed after the match that his team had been unfairly treated, adding to growing debate around refereeing standards at this World Cup.
Responding to the backlash, Collina defended the integrity of FIFA’s officials and warned against allegations that question their honesty.
“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 was quoted as saying by BBC Sport.
While acknowledging that refereeing decisions will always be debated, Collina drew a clear line between healthy discussion and personal accusations.
“Of course, constructive discussion about decisions will always be part of football, but unfounded allegations have no place in our sport,” he said.
Collina also dismissed any suggestion that FIFA’s refereeing department could be influenced by external pressure, including from the highest level of the governing body.
“Equally, nobody can claim that FIFA refereeing can be influenced by anyone, not even by the Fifa president (Gianni Infantino).
“He (Infantino) 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,” he added.
Although FIFA rarely comments publicly on individual refereeing decisions during major tournaments, Collina explained why the governing body believed the two key incidents from the Argentina-Egypt match had been correctly handled.
The first involved an Egyptian goal that was ruled out after VAR detected a foul by Marwan Attia on Lisandro Martínez earlier in the attacking move.
“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. There is no defined limit regarding either the distance from the goal or the amount of time between the incident and the goal,” he stated.
Referring directly to the incident, Collina added, “An example of this came in the Argentina v Egypt game where Egypt number 19 Marwan Attia clearly trod on the foot of Argentina number six Lisandro Martinez.”
He also defended the principle followed by VAR officials. “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.”
The second flashpoint came when Egypt appealed for a penalty after Mohamed Salah went down in the box shortly before Argentina scored the winner. FIFA’s refereeing chief maintained that the officials had reached the correct conclusion.
“Equally, if no foul is identified in the build-up to a goal, the VAR will advise the referee accordingly. Stepping on an opponent’s foot is a foul, whereas a defender who touches the ball first and then makes normal football contact has not committed a foul,” he said.
Referring to the Salah incident, Collina explained, “Again, an example of this came at the end of the same game. The referee and the VAR deemed it normal football contact between Egypt number 10 Mohamed Salah and Argentina number 9 Julian Alvarez.”
Accepting that some decisions will always involve interpretation, Collina backed the overall standard of officiating at 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,” Collina said.