Argentina FA reports potential cyber attack following Egypt match emails

The Argentine Football Association (AFA) has indicated it may have been the target of a cyber attack following its 3-2 comeback victory over Egypt in the World Cup 2026 round of 16. The association has raised concerns after emails sent from its official accounts allegedly criticised the refereeing in the match.

Following the game, the Egyptian Football Association had officially requested that FIFA ban the referee, Francois Letexier, and his officiating team, alleging bias towards the reigning champions. Reports from the Argentine outlet La Calle suggested that emails sent from the AFA account claimed "Argentina did not win" and attributed the result to "corrupt refereeing decisions".

In a formal statement, the AFA addressed the incident: "We want to inform you that we have detected the possible sending of emails from one of our institutional accounts that were not generated or authorised by our team." The association advised the public to disregard any unusual messages received from their accounts, particularly those containing attachments or requests for personal information.

The AFA is currently working to clarify the breach and implement necessary security measures. The match saw Argentina overcome a two-goal deficit with late strikes from Cristian Romero, Lionel Messi, and Enzo Fernandez, setting up a quarter-final clash against Switzerland.