French referee François Letexier is facing an unusually public backlash after officiating Argentina’s dramatic 3-2 win over Egypt in the Round of 16 of the FIFA World Cup 2026, played Tuesday, July 7, at Atlanta Stadium. Egypt’s Football Association has lodged a formal complaint with FIFA seeking an investigation into Letexier and his officiating crew, and the fallout has reportedly pushed the 37-year-old to shut down his Instagram account.
How the match unfolded
Egypt took a shock lead in the 15th minute through a Yasser Ibrahim header. Mostafa Ziko then thought he had doubled the advantage midway through the second half, only for VAR to rule the goal out over a foul on Lisandro Martínez earlier in the move the decision that would later become Egypt’s central grievance. Ziko got his goal anyway in the 67th minute, putting Egypt 2-0 up and, with 11 minutes left, on course for a first-ever World Cup quarter-final.
Argentina then produced one of the tournament’s biggest comebacks. Cristian Romero headed in from a Messi cross in the 79th minute, Messi levelled it himself soon after, and Enzo Fernández scored the winner in stoppage time to send Argentina through 3-2.
Why Egypt is disputing the result
Egypt’s central complaint concerns the passage of play before Fernández’s winner: the EFA says Alexis Mac Allister pulled down Hamdy Fathy inside the box, and that it should have been a penalty. Letexier waved the appeal away and VAR did not intervene.
In its statement, the EFA via federation president Hany Abo Rida accused the officiating team of “serious refereeing mistakes” and “double standards,” and formally asked FIFA to remove Letexier’s crew from the rest of the tournament. Egypt coach Hossam Hassan echoed the complaint post-match: “We have been treated unfairly today. We have suffered injustice.”
FIFA has not publicly responded to the complaint. According to L’Équipe, the governing body is set to review Letexier’s performance as a matter of routine evaluation — but under FIFA’s own rules, a member federation cannot veto or force a change in refereeing appointments; that authority sits solely with the FIFA Referees Committee.
The backlash off the pitch
Letexier has reportedly deactivated his Instagram account following a wave of online abuse after the match — first restricting comments, then taking the account offline entirely, according to multiple reports citing football journalist Micky Jnr.
Who is François Letexier?
Born April 23, 1989, in Bédée, France, Letexier began officiating in Ligue 1 in 2016 and was added to FIFA’s international referee list the following year. He took charge of his first senior international match in 2018 and has since become one of UEFA’s most trusted officials, taking charge of the 2023 UEFA Super Cup, Champions League knockout fixtures, and the Euro 2024 final between Spain and England a match that made him, at 35, the youngest referee to take charge of a men’s European Championship final.
He has also officiated at the Olympic Games, the FIFA Club World Cup, and a UEFA Europa League final, while continuing to referee regularly in Ligue 1. Away from football, Letexier works as a court bailiff a role he has said helps him keep perspective alongside the pressures of top-level officiating.
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