Global scandal? Referee François Letexier ignored FIFA's racism protocol against Egypt
Hossam Hassan, Egypt's coach, further fueled the controversy against the French referee François Letexier, for ignoring the FIFA racism signal
International arbitration is under scrutiny after the controversial outcome of the match where Argentina beat Egypt 3-2. French whistler François Letexier is the center of criticism after being accused of deliberately ignoring the official FIFA racism signal, made by the technical director of the “Pharaohs”, Hossam Hassan.
The incident occurred in the final minutes, just after Argentine Enzo Fernández's goal. Hassan activated the protocol by crossing his arms over his head due to racist insults from the stands. Despite being half a meter away, Letexier not only ignored the warning, but also reprimanded the Egyptian coach, unleashing the fury of the African team, which now questions the legitimacy of the result. What is the crossed arms sign and why did FIFA create it?
Far from being a tantrum, the gesture of crossing your arms at the wrists in the shape of an “X” is a universal visual code. FIFA implemented it to denounce racist incidents on the field immediately and without the need for words.
Origin: It was introduced in the 2024 Colombia U-20 Women's World Cup. Support: It has the support of the 211 member federations of FIFA. Activation: It can be carried out by players, coaches or technical staff.
The attitude of the French whistler set the tone for, at the end of the game, the Egyptian strategist to harshly criticize the work of the European referee and propose certain unclear actions to favor Argentina on its way to confirming the title won four years ago.
Hossam Hassan questioned the annulment of what would have been Egypt's second goal and the reaffirmation of their dominance on the field of play and later, a penalty that was not scored in their favor and did not even merit review by the VAR.
We will have to wait for the position of FIFA, which since the beginning of the World Cup has been highly criticized for appearing that its decisions have favored Argentina, then the interference of Donald Trump to withdraw Folarin Balogun's red card and now this matter of the signal of racism ignored by the French referee.