Egypt star Mostafa Zico has accused FIFA of rigging the World Cup after his team was sensationally ousted by Argentina despite holding a 2-0 at the 79th-minute mark of the game.
In the aftermath of the result, conspiracy theories immediately exploded, with FIFA accused of bias and wanting football legend Lionel Messi to stay in the tournament.
A decision by VAR to take a goal off Zico at the 58th minute has added fuel to the fire, and a subsequent decision by FIFA to have all Argentinian referees for France’s next clash with Morocco in Boston has sparked a social media storm.
“The referee was not fair. The injustice was clear,” a tearful Zico said after his team’s dramatic exit.
“We did a good job in the early stages of the match. There’s been an unfairness right from the start of the match. A 2-0 lead isn’t enough to beat Argentina.
“It’s clear that this tournament has been fixed.”
Egypt coach Hossam Hassan was also furious.
“I’m going home and won’t be watching any more games from the tournament,” he said.
“What happened to us wasn’t fair. We should have had a penalty, a goal was disallowed, and I don’t know why it was disallowed.”
The conspiracy theory then went into overdrive when the referees were announced for the France match.
France is the overwhelming favourite to win the tournament, with Spain second with bookmakers and Argentina third.
And fans are gobsmacked by the all-Argentinian set-up for Boston.
“FIFA doesnt hide it anymore 😂😂😂😂 All Argentinian (refs …) why dont you bring Messi to check the VAR too?” one fan raged on social media.
And another: “A full Argentinian delegation, you will never beat the allegations.”
And another: “All Argentina referees for a France match, FIFA trying everything to rig the World Cup for Argentina once again.”
And another: “OMG. are you f****** serious?????????? YOU DON’T EVEN HIDE THIS S*** ANYMORE.”
Others posted pictures of Argentina’s flag, calling it the new FIFA logo, while images of FIFA president Gianni Infantino hugging Messi also appeared.
It is another layer of controversy to the tournament, after FIFA suspended a red card on the USA’s Folarin Balogun following a call from Donald Trump.
Messi has already made headlines this tournament when a controversial tackle went unpunished during Argentina’s 3-0 win over Algeria.
Midway through the first half, with the score at 1-0, Messi made a clumsy challenge that saw his studs make contact with the back of Aissa Mandi’s calf.
Mandi briefly stayed down, but didn’t appear to be in too much pain. The referee called a foul, but opted against brandishing a card, and the VAR also opted not to get involved.
Fans were furious and, speaking after the match, ESPN analyst Ale Moreno also said it was “100 per cent a red card”.
“It plays along this narrative that great players get preferential treatment,” Moreno added.
The controversial incident was quickly overshadowed by Messi’s first ever World Cup hat-trick.