FIFA has suspended Egypt head coach Hossam Hassan and his twin brother, Ibrahim Hassan, for three matches each, while forward Mostafa Zico has received a five-match ban following criticism of refereeing after the country’s elimination from the 2026 World Cup.
The Egyptian Football Association, EFA, announced the sanctions on Monday, 19th of October 2026, saying it had requested detailed explanations of the decisions from FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee to assess its legal options and determine whether to appeal.
Hossam is the national team’s head coach, while Ibrahim serves as its director.
The suspensions could rule the Hassan brothers out of Egypt’s upcoming Africa Cup of Nations qualifying matches against Malawi in November, as well as the opening fixture of the March international window. Zico’s five-match ban is expected to keep him out until June.
The sanctions follow Egypt’s 3-2 defeat to Argentina in the round of 16 of the 2026 World Cup in Atlanta, United States, on July 6. Egypt had taken a two-goal lead before Argentina fought back to secure victory and advance to the quarter-finals.
The match was marked by controversy over refereeing decisions, including a disallowed goal by Zico and a late penalty appeal involving Egyptian midfielder Hamdy Fathy.
Zico’s goal was ruled out following a video assistant referee review that identified an earlier foul on Argentina defender Lisandro Martinez.
Argentina subsequently fought back, with Cristian Romero and Lionel Messi scoring before Enzo Fernandez netted the winning goal.
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Egypt also appealed for a penalty after an alleged shirt pull by Argentina’s Alexis Mac Allister on Fathy during the build-up to Fernandez’s decisive goal. The Egyptians argued that the incident warranted a penalty review.
Following the defeat, Hossam criticised the officiating, accusing the officials of treating his team unfairly.
“I do not want to put it nicely and talk about hard luck. We have been cheated unfairly today; we have suffered injustice,” Hassan said at his post-match news conference.
He also questioned the handling of the penalty appeal, saying, “We haven’t seen respect or fair play. There has not been respect or fair play.”
Zico also criticized the referee in a post-match interview, describing the officiating as unfair and alleging that the match had been rigged, according to reports.
FIFA refereeing chief Pierluigi Collina defended the officiating and warned that accusations against match officials could expose referees and their families to threats.
The EFA said its next steps would depend on the detailed explanations from FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee and its assessment of the legal grounds for the suspensions.
The association is considering an appeal under the applicable regulations, but has yet to announce its final decision.
GWG
