Wu Lichuan/Wen On July 8th, "The Egyptian Football Association officially appealed and requested an investigation into the referee" topped the hot search list, while the entry "Argentina Dirty" also dominated the list. This incident inevitably cast a shadow over this World Cup and posed a huge test for FIFA.

In the World Cup round of 16 that ended in the early morning of July 8th Beijing time, the Egyptian team played at a high level. In the 78th minute, the Argentine team, still trailing 0-2, scored three goals in a row, completing a stunning comeback and setting a World Cup record for the "latest comeback" in a two goal deficit. In this game, Messi first missed the penalty kick, and then helped the team equalize with one pass and one shot, achieving great success.

I have watched the entire game and to be honest, the Argentine team did not play dirty. People have different perceptions of the size of physical contact in intense competition, but to judge whether a team's playing style is "dirty", it depends on whether it is damaged or inferior. Undoubtedly, the Argentine team does not meet this' standard '.

But what Egypt is holding on to is not the issue of playing style, but the off field factors. The Egyptian Football Association stated in a statement that French referee Fran ç ois Letsie committed extremely serious officiating errors and displayed clear double standards during the match, which directly led to the Egyptian national team losing the game and being eliminated from this World Cup. An Egyptian player directly pointed out that the game was manipulated, which led to Fran ç ois Letsie being criticized by netizens and having to shut down his social media.

The so-called "law enforcement error" has a clear direction: a goal scored by the Egyptian team was found to have been fouled before the attack was launched and the goal was invalid after VAR replay, while the winning goal of the Argentine team in injury time was also found to have been fouled first, but was not reviewed by VAR and counted as a good goal. After the game, the head coach and several players of the Egyptian team publicly questioned the penalty and believed that the team missed a penalty opportunity that they should have received. Real Madrid coach Mourinho also stood up for this: why is every incident involving Argentina being repeatedly examined, while Egypt does not receive the same treatment? VAR should have achieved fairness, not created chaos.

Technical statistics also seem to support this claim: Argentina committed 13 fouls and did not receive a yellow card; Egypt committed 11 fouls and received 3 yellow cards in succession.

The World Cup has been held for nearly a hundred years, and the controversy over referees has always existed. But there seems to be more controversy over the referees in this World Cup. Previously, in the round of 16 match between France and Paraguay, Uzbekistan referee Tantashev was also accused of inconsistent penalty standards. Although Paraguay was fouled 13 times throughout the game, no player received a yellow card, while France only received 3 yellow cards for 11 fouls. This also angered the French star Mbappe: If we have to play dirty football, then we can do it this way.

Regarding the dispute over the referee's decision, whether it is solely due to technical reasons or other "conspiracies", of course, we cannot rely solely on one party's words or visual evidence. To uncover the truth behind it, one can only hope for a thorough investigation. There is a precedent in this regard: during this World Cup, FIFA investigated a referee for suspected racism. In January 2023, FIFA also announced an investigation into Argentina's misconduct during the World Cup final.

It is worth watching how FIFA responds to the Egyptian Football Association's "tough stance". However, for FIFA, the real test may not be a match's referee controversy.

The biggest controversy of this World Cup is the influence of political factors on matches or matches. This is particularly typical of the "suspension of American players with red cards" incident.

FIFA announced on July 5th local time that the forward of the US team, Fralin Barrogon, will qualify for the round of 16 match against Belgium in the World Cup. This is a serious violation of the international standard of "automatic suspension for one game with a red card", and the background is that the White House once called FIFA President Giannis Infantino to request a review of Balrogon's red card.

This incident has attracted a wave of criticism from the world football community. Among them, the Belgian Football Association angrily appealed to FIFA, and UEFA criticized FIFA's decision for crossing the red line. Former FIFA President Blatter even posted on social media criticizing FIFA's decision, stating that football should not be a playground for political power. In addition, the Iranian national team encountered difficulties and restrictions during their time in the United States, which also raised concerns about the fairness and inclusiveness of the competition.

Politics belongs to politics, football belongs to football. This concept is the foundation of the World Cup. Fair game is the soul of the World Cup football tournament. Only by firmly adhering to the principle of fairness and treating all participating teams equally can organizers truly host the most successful World Cup.

After expanding to 48 teams, this World Cup is the largest global football event in history. Fans from all over the world gather in front of the venue or television, cheering and enjoying high-level matches. The scene of the "demon man" Haaland and the princess embracing and celebrating, and Aimar embracing and comforting the "enemy general" Cristiano Ronaldo, evokes warmth in people's hearts. But it cannot be denied that it may also be the World Cup with the most obvious external intervention in football and the biggest criticism of unfair doubts in history.

In this regard, FIFA not only needs to showcase its internal construction achievements, event management and supervision level to the world, abandon bureaucratic atmosphere, prevent and control corruption, and eliminate various "off field factors" that bring injustice, in order to win the trust of the outside world, but also needs to respond to new challenges and questions, come up with problem-solving ideas that can withstand the test of time, in order to resolve prominent contradictions and unite the hearts of the world.

The spirit of sportsmanship is indispensable in football matches. Ultimately, the World Cup is not just about the performance of teams. Beyond victory or defeat, the pursuit of civilization and the care for the brilliance of humanity are equally important. As the spiritual home of football worldwide, the fairness of the World Cup must never be compromised.

(The author is a senior media professional)