New York City Mayor backs Egypt's VAR 'robbed' claim after Argentina World Cup defeat

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani inserted himself into the growing controversy surrounding Egypt’s 3-2 defeat to Argentina in the round of 16 of the 2026 World Cup, declaring during a public address that Egypt had been “robbed” — echoing frustrations already voiced by players and officials from the Egyptian Football Association.

Mamdani made the remark while speaking to constituents about a new city bus initiative called “Next Stop: Better Buses, Faster Service.” After outlining how the plan would save New Yorkers hours of commuting time each year, the football enthusiast drew an unexpected analogy: “It means agreeing with your friends that Egypt were robbed yesterday. Above all, it means time returned to New Yorkers who don’t have nearly enough of it.”

The comment landed against a backdrop of genuine controversy. In the second half of the match, Egypt had a goal ruled out by VAR after officials determined a foul had occurred more than 20 seconds before Mostafa Zico found the net. Egypt did score shortly afterwards to level the tie, but Argentina mounted a comeback in the final 20 minutes to seal the victory and advance to the quarter-finals.

The nature of the defeat prompted immediate backlash from within the Egyptian camp. At least one Egypt player publicly claimed the tournament was “fixed,” while the Egyptian Football Association reportedly filed an official complaint against French referee François Letexier and his officiating team.

In a statement posted to social media, the EFA said it “cannot remain silent regarding the refereeing decisions witnessed during the match against Argentina as well as the failure to make appropriate use of the Video Assistant Referee system,” adding that “several key incidents raised serious concerns and left profound questions about the consistency and fairness of decisions that directly influenced the course of the game.”

The VAR ruling that disallowed Egypt’s goal has drawn scrutiny from analysts and supporters worldwide, with debate centring on the length of time between the alleged foul and the eventual finish, and whether the protocol was applied correctly. FIFA has not yet issued a formal response to the EFA’s complaint.