Former World Cup official: 'Conspiracy theories about favouritism are nonsense'

Former World Cup assistant referee Darren Cann has hit out at the growing number of conspiracy theories circulating on social media regarding officiating at the tournament. Many fans have suggested that FIFA is orchestrating results to ensure specific teams, such as Argentina and Lionel Messi, reach the final.

Cann, who officiated at the 2010 and 2014 World Cups, insists that referees are entirely independent of FIFA. He explained that officials operate within a separate training camp, focusing on physical preparation and match analysis, with no clandestine meetings with governing body executives.

Mistakes are made, it is human nature. Sometimes it might feel like the decisions are going against your country or club, but that's just the result of a fast-moving game with human beings at the centre of it, not a pre-determined outcome. Darren Cann

Cann noted that officials do not judge based on a player's name. He recalled a Champions League match between Barcelona and Bayern Munich, where he and referee Howard Webb failed to award a penalty to Messi, explaining that they called the game honestly based on their view at that split second.

The former official warned that these unfounded accusations cause real-world harm, leading to abuse and threats against referees and their families. He highlighted that even the head of refereeing, Pierluigi Collina, has had to publicly defend his team following similar claims during the current tournament.

According to Cann, while errors are inevitable in a high volume of matches, they are a product of human fallibility rather than a masterplan. As Slavko Vincic prepares to take charge of the final, his only goal, like every other referee, is to leave the pitch without any incorrect decisions that impact the result.