FIFA sanctions Egypt coach, official, and player months after World Cup exit

FIFA's Disciplinary Committee has handed three-match bans to Egypt head coach Hossam Hassan and team manager Ibrahim Hassan, while midfielder Ziko has been suspended for five international matches. The sanctions were announced by the Egyptian Football Association, which has confirmed plans to appeal the ruling.

The disciplinary action follows heated scenes after Egypt's narrow 3-2 defeat to Argentina on July 7. French referee François Letexier and his officiating crew found themselves at the center of the storm, with the Egyptian camp adamant that costly refereeing errors enabled Argentina to progress.

The Egyptian FA lodged an official complaint against Letexier and his assistants after the clash, demanding that the officiating team be dismissed from the tournament. Coach Hassan was particularly incensed by a decisive sequence moments before Argentina's 92nd-minute winner from Enzo Fernández, when Alexis Mac Allister appeared to pull Egypt midfielder Hamdi Fathi's shirt inside the Argentine penalty box.

Egypt’s appeals for a penalty were dismissed by Letexier, who allowed play to continue. “In my opinion—and I am quite unequivocal about this—it should have been a penalty,” former German Bundesliga referee Patrick Ittrich said, according to the DPA news agency.