Algeria File Complaint Over Referee’s Decision on Messi Tackle

Photo: Collected

Staff Correspondent: Algeria have lodged a complaint with FIFA over “refereeing injustice” in their opening World Cup loss to Argentina, particularly a tackle by Lionel Messi, an Algerian football federation source told AFP on Friday.
The incident took place during Argentina and Algeria’s Group J match at Kansas City Stadium on June 16, 2026. Messi caught Algeria defender Aissa Mandi on the calf with a studs-up challenge from behind in the 30th minute of the match but was not booked. By that point, Messi had already put Argentina ahead, and he went on to complete a hat-trick by the final whistle.
“The complaint primarily concerns Messi’s challenge, which deserved a red card, in everyone’s opinion,” the federation source said. “There were also two elbow incidents... both of which warranted dismissals.”
The Algerian federation was unequivocal about the scale of the perceived officiating failures, arguing that three incidents were “crystal clear,” yet VAR did not intervene in any of them. The source was careful to frame the grievance as a matter of principle rather than sour grapes over the result:
“We are not saying that the Argentine team was not strong, but we cannot remain silent in the face of injustice.”
For Messi personally, the match was a record-equaling night despite the controversy — his treble saw him draw level with former Germany striker Miroslav Klose’s all-time World Cup scoring record of 16 goals.
Algeria, meanwhile, are looking to put the controversy behind them as they continue their campaign. They face Jordan in their second group match on Monday, before closing out their Group J fixtures against Austria on Saturday, June 27. The North African side are hoping to reach the World Cup knockout stage for only the second time in their history, having previously fallen in extra time to eventual champions Germany in the last 16 back in 2014.
While FIFA complaints of this nature rarely alter match outcomes retroactively, the case could push FIFA toward reviewing its refereeing and VAR protocols for high-profile players going forward.