New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is the most prominent figure to support Egypt after the 3-2 vote. FIFA World Cup Round of 16 defeat in Argentina, announcing that the African side has been “stolen” in words that spread quickly amid the growing dispute over the directors.Mamdani’s comments came just a day after Lionel Messi inspired Argentina to one of the greatest feats in World Cup history, overturning a 2-0 deficit in the final 15 minutes to eliminate Mohamed Salah’s Egypt and book a place in the quarterfinals.
Enemies support Egypt with the word ‘stolen’
Speaking at the launch of New York City’s “Next Stop: Better Buses, Faster Service” launched, Mamdani unexpectedly described the World Cup controversy while showing how commuters can benefit from bus service.“Now when you take the bus to work, it’s faster,” Mamdani said. “In six months, you will have spent 24 hours on the bus. In a year, you will have saved more than two days of travel.”He continued: “That means breakfast with your family. It means spending time hitting balls and hitting your kid’s Little League game. It means going home to bed.”Then came a line that drew huge cheers from the audience.“It means agreeing with your friends that Egypt was robbed yesterday. Above all, it means that New Yorkers have almost no time to return.”The mayor’s comments immediately struck a chord with supporters who believe Egypt were well denied, although it does not change the situation that saw Argentina go through after Messi urged a late turnaround.Mamdani’s comments echo the criticism of Egyptian players, coaches and fans, many of whom say major refereeing decisions favor the ruling elite.
The VAR controversy causes “false” claims to return to Argentina
The conflict centered on a series of shots that dramatically changed the course of the game.Early in the second half, Egypt thought they had extended their lead when Mostafa Ziko found the net after impressing the team. However, after a lengthy VAR review, the referees ruled that Marwan Attia had interfered with Lisandro Martínez earlier in the build-up, leading to the goal being disallowed.Many pundits and supporters said the foul was too far away for VAR to intervene, making the decision one of the biggest debates in the competition.Egypt managed to take a 2-0 lead soon after, but Argentina made a stunning comeback. Messi sparked a revival by assisting Cristian Romero in the 79th minute before Argentina scored twice, completing a shock 3-2 victory in stoppage time.Another controversial moment came when Julián Álvarez escaped without a penalty after a tackle on Salah, adding to the accusations that crucial calls went in Argentina’s favor.Afterwards, the Egyptian coach, Hossam Hassan, several players and the Egyptian Football Association publicly called the tournament “rigged” in favor of Argentina.The Egyptian Football Association has said it “cannot remain silent” over what it says are irregularities and unfairness, insisting that several key decisions affected the outcome of the match.The head of FIFA, Pierluigi Collina, rejected the notion of bias, defending VAR’s intervention and stressing that “bad is bad” regardless of the goal. He also warned that baseless allegations against match officials could lead to threats and violence.
