More than 10 million sign petition to kick Argentina out of FIFA World Cup amid claims of referee bias | Football News
More than ten million people have signed an online petition on argentinaout.org calling for Argentina to be kicked out of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, accusing FIFA and match officials of favoring Lionel Messi and the defending champions. The petition, hosted by argentinaout.com, gained a lot of attention after Argentina’s dramatic comeback win over Egypt in the Round of 16.The petition states that Argentina has received favorable decisions throughout the tournament. “Argentina Out is a fan-led campaign calling for Argentina to be removed from the 2026 World Cup,” it read. “Sign the Kick Out Argentina petition to demand consistent rules, transparent governance, and fair competition for every country. Add your voice and help make Argentina’s kick call impossible to ignore.”The controversy escalated after Argentina overturned a 2-0 deficit to beat Egyptscored three goals in the final 13 minutes despite missing Messi in an earlier penalty. Egypt were furious after one of their goals was disallowed following a VAR review, while Argentina’s late winner stood despite claims of a foul on Mohamed Salah in the build-up.Egypt’s manager Hossam Hassan did not hold back after the game, saying: “I will say what I think, regardless of the results. It was clearly rigged, and everyone saw it. If they wanted them to win so badly, why did they invite everyone to participate in the World Cup?” He added: “FIFA promotes ‘Fair Play’, but we don’t see it on the pitch … without the mistakes, the result would be different.”
Head coach Scaloni rejected claims of favoritism
Before the quarter-final in Argentina, manager Lionel Scaloni dismissed the allegations, insisting that modern technology makes referee bias almost impossible. “In 1986, they also said that Argentina got unfair advantages. This is not new for us,” he said.Scaloni added, “There are people who don’t like to see Argentina win. These comments only encourage my team to play better football.”Explaining his point, he said, “With VAR and all the technology we have today, it’s extremely difficult to help anyone. There’s no room for different interpretations… Argentina is now preparing to face England in the semi-finals of the World Cup.
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