Argentine FA probes hack after 'corrupt refereeing' emails
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- Argentine Football Association (AFA) detected possible unauthorized access to one of its institutional accounts and warned the public to ignore any unusual messages, especially those containing links, attachments, or requests for personal information.
- Argentine outlet La Calle reported that emails sent from AFA's account to journalists after the match declared 'Argentina did not win' and blamed 'corrupt refereeing decisions' for the result.
- AFA sources told La Calle that a group of Egyptian-origin hackers was behind the breach, and that the emails also praised Egypt's performance.
- Argentina trailed Egypt 2-0 in the last-16 match in Atlanta before Cristian Romero, Lionel Messi, and Enzo Fernandez (in second-half stoppage time) completed a 3-2 comeback to set up a quarter-final against Switzerland.
- Egyptian Football Association formally asked FIFA to remove French referee Francois Letexier and his officiating crew from the tournament, alleging bias in favor of Argentina.
- Egypt coach Hossam Hassan said his side was 'treated unfairly' and suggested FIFA wanted to 'keep the world champion in the competition' and 'Messi in the running.'
Why it matters: The AFA now faces a dual problem: a cybersecurity breach it must investigate and a refereeing controversy it didn't author. Egypt has already escalated its bias complaint through a formal FIFA channel targeting Letexier, giving the federation a documented pathway to challenge the result as Argentina advances to face Switzerland on Sunday.
