More than 10 million people have joined a petition demanding Argentina's expulsion from the World Cup, as claims spread that the national soccer team is benefiting from "biased refereeing" by the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) and match officials.
According to Hong Kong's South China Morning Post (SCMP) on the 14th (Korea time), more than 6 million people had signed a petition for Argentina's World Cup expulsion posted on the unofficial petition site "Argentina Out."
The petition spread rapidly thereafter. As of 7:30 a.m. on the 16th, the site's own count showed participants had surpassed 10 million. This is about double the 5 million target set by the organizers. However, the website is an unofficial site operated with no connection to FIFA or national soccer associations, and it has no legal effect.
The petition's organizers claimed that Argentina benefits from referee decisions in every match and that FIFA has also condoned this, raising questions about the fairness of the World Cup. The petition stated, "It is clear that FIFA and referees are biased toward Lionel Messi and Argentina," adding, "If the winning team has already been decided, why should other countries compete? Argentina should be excluded from the World Cup to give other teams a fair chance."
The controversy came to a head after the round-of-16 match between Argentina and Egypt on the 8th. In the 58th minute, Mostafa Zico's goal was disallowed after a foul was called in the preceding play, and late in the match a penalty was not awarded when Mohamed Salah collided with an opponent, sparking refereeing disputes.
Egypt manager Hossam Hassan strongly criticized the decisions after the match, saying, "This match was clearly rigged, and everyone saw it," and "If they want Argentina to win that badly, why invite other countries to the World Cup?" He added, "FIFA touts 'fair play,' but we couldn't see any of that on the pitch."
Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni, on the other hand, flatly denied the allegations. "With review technologies including VAR in use, it is very difficult to make calls that favor a particular team," he said. "Even in 1986, there was talk that Argentina was gaining unfair advantages. This is nothing new to us."
Meanwhile, Argentina advanced to the final by beating England 2-1 in the tournament semifinal held at Atlanta Stadium in the United States on the 16th, combining an equalizer from Enzo Fernandez in the 85th minute and a comeback goal from Lautaro Martinez in stoppage time. Argentina will play Spain in the final at 4 a.m. on the 20th at New Jersey Stadium in New York, United States.
