FIFA World Cup: Argentina's Win Over Egypt Raises Questions But They Aren't New To Controversies
Lionel Messi was left in tears as Argentina completed a sensational comeback to beat Egypt in their FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 16 clash on Tuesday.
Lionel Messi was left in tears as Argentina completed a sensational comeback to beat Egypt in their FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 16 clash on Tuesday. From 0-2 down, Argentina showed tremendous fight to score 3 goals in 14 minutes in what is being considered the 'game of the tournament'. Messi missed a penalty early in the game but a goal and an assist made sure that the superstar footballer grabbed the limelight. However, it was the controversial VAR decisions that ended up dominating the headlines after the match. Egypt were not happy with some of the referee decisions and some players as well as head coach Hossam Hassan hinted at possible favouritism towards Argentina when it comes to the World Cup.
Argentina are no stranger to controversies. Dating back to the first World Cup edition in 1930, Argentina have found themselves embroiled in various contentious moments. Add to that moments like the Hand Of God in 1986 and the controversial title victory in 1978, and the footballing superpower has a long and complicated history when it comes to the FIFA World Cup.
In 1930, Argentina found themselves in a bizarre row just ahead of the final against Uruguay. Both teams wanted to use their own ball and FIFA ended up deciding that Argentina's ball would be used in the first half while Uruguay's would be used in the second half. Argentina led 2-1 at half-time but it quickly changed and Uruguay ended up winning 4-2.
Cut to 1978 and Argentina went on to lift the FIFA World Cup trophy for the first time ever. However, the country was under a military dictatorship led by Jorge Rafael Videla and the tournament is still considered by many as an attempt to improve the regime's image.
Argentina's 6-0 win over Peru became the biggest bone of contention. Argentina needed a big win to overtake Brazil and reach the final. That is exactly what happened but questions soon emerged about the sanctity of the contest as well as the result.
Just 8 years later, the world stood still as Diego Maradona used his hand to score a controversial goal against England. During the 1986 edition, Maradona's 'Hand Of God' goal made it 1-0 for his side and although he ended up scoring one of the best goals of all time later in the game, the first goal became one of the most infamous incidents in football history.
Maradona was once again in the news for the wrong reasons as he failed a drug test after scoring against Greece and the legendary Argentina footballer was sent home midway through the 1994 tournament. The campaign soon collapsed for Argentina as they were eliminated in the Round of 16, and Maradona's farewell came shrouded in controversy forever.
Four years later, Argentina and England met in a much-anticipated clash and although Argentina won on penalties, it was the David Beckham red card that became the biggest talking point. While Beckham did react in a rash manner, Diego Simeone later admitted that he tried to get the England superstar dismissed and it brought into question the matter of fair conduct.
In 2022, in a match that has come to be known as the 'Battle Of Lusail', Argentina faced the Netherlands and it went on to become one of the most ill-tempered matches in World Cup history. The match produced a World Cup-record 18 yellow cards, while Denzel Dumfries was sent off after the penalty shootout. Argentina ended up winning on penalties but the decisions taken by the referee once again came under the scanner.
That brings us to 2026. Murmurs had already begun when some fans were not happy with the referee's decisions during the match against Cape Verde. However, the match against Egypt has once again opened a can of worms surrounding Argentina.
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