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Egypt coach punished for showing FIFA anti-racism gesture
Egypt suffered a heartbreaking 3-2 defeat to defending champions Argentina in their FIFA World Cup Round of 16 clash after surrendering a late lead.
The African giants looked on course for the quarter-finals before Lionel Messi inspired the comeback and Enzo Fernández headed home the winner in stoppage time.
FIFA WORLD CUP: EGYPT 2-3 ARGENTINA
The controversy began with Egypt leading 1-0 when Mostafa Ziko thought he had doubled the advantage. However, French referee François Letexier overturned the goal after an on-field VAR review. Officials ruled that an Egyptian player had fouled Lisandro Martínez around 20 seconds before the ball crossed the line. sportbet.reviews
Ziko later made it 2-2, but Argentina completed a dramatic turnaround in the closing stages. Messi equalised before Fernández sealed victory with a stoppage-time header.
The drama continued on the touchline as Hassan confronted Letexier. The veteran coach made FIFA’s official anti-racism “X” gesture before the referee responded by showing him a yellow card.
TOUCHLINE CHAOS
FIFA introduced the “X” signal in 2024 to allow players and coaches to report racist abuse. The gesture can trigger a three-step protocol that includes suspending or abandoning a match.
Instead, Letexier allowed play to continue after cautioning Hassan. Reports remain divided over why the Egypt coach used the gesture. Some believe he reacted to alleged abuse, while others say he used it to protest the officiating.
The situation escalated moments later when a member of Egypt’s backroom staff ran onto the pitch and confronted Messi. Match officials immediately showed the staff member a red card before security escorted him away.
HOSSAM HASSAN HITS OUT
After the final whistle, Hassan continued making the “X” gesture while arguing with officials. He also confronted a pitchside photographer before leaving the field.
The Egypt coach then accused officials of manipulating the match in favour of Argentina.
“I will say what is on my mind regardless of the consequences. This was clearly a manipulated match, the whole world saw it. And I want to say something else, if they want Argentina to win so badly, then why invite everyone to come and take part?”
Hassan also claimed Egypt had been denied a fair contest.
“We were treated unfairly and subjected to injustice. The result was influenced by internal and external factors.”
Egyptian football analyst Ahmad Youssef also questioned the consistency of the officiating. He argued that the overturned goal changed the outcome of the match.
FIFA could now investigate Hassan over his use of the governing body’s anti-racism gesture. His explosive post-match comments could also come under disciplinary review.
L'État annonce le blocage des sites internet à caractère obscène
Le gouvernement souhaite désormais agir sur le contenu diffusé en ligne dans le cadre de sa politique de lutte contre l'insécurité. Réuni en Conseil des ministres au palais d'État d'Iavoloha, l'Exécutif a décidé de mettre en place des mesures destinées à bloquer les sites internet diffusant des images et vidéos à caractère obscène. Selon les autorités, ces contenus sont contraires aux bonnes mœurs et peuvent porter atteinte à l'ordre public.
Dans le communiqué publié à l'issue de la réunion, la Présidence de la Refondation de la République estime que l'existence de ces plateformes favorise le développement de différentes formes de délinquance et participe à la dégradation du climat sécuritaire. Les ministères ainsi que les organismes publics concernés ont été chargés de travailler ensemble afin d'assurer l'application de cette décision.
À travers cette mesure, le pouvoir affiche sa volonté d'intégrer le numérique dans son dispositif de sécurité. L'objectif est de limiter la diffusion de contenus considérés comme nuisibles et d'agir sur des facteurs que les autorités jugent susceptibles d'encourager certains comportements déviants.
Si la décision est désormais actée, plusieurs zones d'ombre demeurent. Le communiqué ne précise ni les critères qui permettront d'identifier les sites visés, ni l'autorité qui sera chargée d'en dresser la liste. Aucune indication n'a également été donnée sur les moyens techniques qui seront utilisés pour procéder au blocage des plateformes concernées.
Cette absence de précisions alimente déjà les interrogations sur le périmètre réel de la mesure. Les réseaux sociaux pourraient-ils être concernés ? Certaines pages Facebook ou certains comptes diffusant des contenus jugés contraires aux bonnes mœurs ou susceptibles de troubler l'ordre public pourraient-ils être visés ? Ces questions prennent d'autant plus d'importance que le ministre de la Communication et de la Culture, O'Gascar Fenosoa Mandrindrarivony, avait annoncé le 15 juin dernier que le gouvernement réfléchissait à une loi destinée à encadrer les réseaux sociaux afin de lutter contre le harcèlement, la diffamation et la désinformation, tout en protégeant les valeurs malgaches.
Parallèlement, les autorités dénoncent régulièrement les comptes anonymes présents sur les réseaux sociaux. Lors d'une déclaration de l'État-major mixte opérationnel national (EMMO-NAT), le directeur général de la Police nationale, le contrôleur général Jean Victor Tsaramonina, a accusé certains comptes « fake » de diffuser des informations destinées à installer un climat de peur au sein de la population.
Cette décision intervient également dans un contexte politique particulier. Depuis plusieurs semaines, les responsables de l'État associent la montée de l'insécurité à des tentatives de déstabilisation du pouvoir. Dans ce contexte, le futur dispositif sera observé avec attention. S'il appartient à l'État de lutter contre les contenus illicites, plusieurs voix estiment qu'il sera tout aussi important de garantir le respect de la liberté d'expression et d'opinion afin que la lutte contre les abus sur internet ne se transforme pas en outil de restriction des libertés numériques.
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Relebohile Mofokeng sends funny message to Kaizer Chiefs
Relebohile Mofokeng is set to leave South Africa on Thursday to begin the next chapter of his career with Royale Union Saint-Gilloise in Belgium.
The 21-year-old winger returned home last week to spend time with family and supporters before flying out.
BACK IN MZANSI
The former Orlando Pirates star visited Sharpeville and Vanderbijlpark, where he hosted his foundation’s annual grassroots youth football tournaments. The events attracted young players from the local community as Mofokeng continued giving back before his move to Europe.
The talented winger also organised an official farewell dinner with close friends and several Bafana Bafana teammates. The gathering marked the end of an outstanding spell in the Betway Premiership before his overseas adventure.
During his farewell speech, Mofokeng left guests laughing with a cheeky message aimed at Kaizer Chiefs.
CHEEKY RELEBOHILE MOFOKENG FAREWELL MESSAGE
The exciting attacker joked that one of Orlando Pirates’ biggest rivals would finally have some relief now that he was leaving the country.
“Kaizer Chiefs will now be able to rest now that I am leaving South Africa.”
The remark drew laughter from those in attendance and reflected the fierce rivalry between Pirates and Chiefs. Mofokeng regularly troubled the Amakhosi defence during his time in the Betway Premiership, making him a fan favourite among the Buccaneers faithful.
The winger now turns his attention to Belgium, where he will begin training with Royale Union Saint-Gilloise ahead of the new season.
The move gives Mofokeng an opportunity to test himself in European football after establishing himself as one of South Africa’s brightest young talents.
Watch: Stormers skipper champing at the bit
Jean-Luc du Plessis describes the hunger and excitement in the Stormers XXIII camp as the seasoned playmaker prepares to lead the Cape outfit in the Currie Cup.
WATCH: New Stormers boss on his ultimate goal
🫡 This is your captain speaking. We will have Jean-Luc du Plessis leading the DHL Stormers XXIII in the Carling Currie Cup this season. #inittogether #XXIII pic.twitter.com/sN9hD23MP9
— DHL Stormers (@THESTORMERS) July 7, 2026
Photo: Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images
The post Watch: Stormers skipper champing at the bit appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.
Scottish wizard out to cast spell on Boks
Scotland need flyhalf Finn Russell to produce the magic to beat the Springboks in South Africa for the first time, writes MARK KEOHANE.
Russell is Scotland’s flyhalf conductor. When he plays there is always hype and there is always hope.
Russell has never played the Springboks in South Africa wearing his Scotland colours.
He was in South Africa in 2021 with the British & Irish Lions, but his tour combined elation, frustration and despair.
The elation came from being selected and the frustration from being unavailable for the first two Tests of the three-Test series because he was still recovering from an achilles injury.
Russell finally saw Test match action in the third and final Test, coming on as an early replacement. He scored 11 of the Lions’ 16 points in a dramatic 19-16 defeat, which also secured the series win for the Springboks.
ALSO: Boks expect Scottish chaos
Russell was praised for his wizardry on the ball and his ability to find vulnerability in a Springbok defensive system that had proved miserly all series.
It was a little too late for Russell and the Lions. To add to the despair and disappointment, Covid-19 lockdown forced the entire tour to be played in empty stadiums.
In media interviews previewing the inaugural Nations Championship, Russell bemoaned not experiencing South Africa and the Springboks as he had envisaged due to the lockdown restrictions. He said the prospect of going to South Africa for a Test match in front of packed crowds in July would be a first for him.
MORE: Scots’ biggest weapon set to fire at Boks
Russell is hopeful that July, a Test month of firsts for him, will also be a Test month of firsts for Scotland in South Africa in the professional era. The Scots have never won against the Springboks in South Africa, and Russell has also never played in Argentina and Fiji, the destinations for Scotland’s other two Nations Championship matches.
Russell is a fan of the Nations Championship concept, where the reward in each Test is league points for the finals weekend at Twickenham, where teams rank from six plays six down to one plays one.
He wants Scotland to achieve that No 1 spot after they mixed the magical with the dire in the recent Six Nations. Scotland lost to Italy but hammered England and beat France, only then to get hammered by Ireland.
TOWNSEND: Boks provide the toughest test
Russell, who was the highest-paid player in the sport when signing for Paris-based Racing 92, remains one of the most sought-after No 10s in the game. He has significant playing pedigree, having started his career at Glasgow (81 matches).
He has been central to Johann van Graan’s rebuild of Bath in the English Premiership and Europe, and wants that one big hurrah in South Africa against the Springboks.
Russell, nearing 100 Test caps, will probably play out his Test career at the World Cup in Australia next year when he will be approaching 35.
But as Van Graan repeatedly says, there is still so much magic in Russell’s hands and feet, not to mention his mind, that he remains one of the biggest influences on match days, be it for Bath or Scotland.
And if Scotland are to win for the first time in eight attempts in South Africa, it will be down to Russell.
– This column first appeared in the July 2026 issue of SA Rugby magazine. The August 2026 issue is also available to read for FREE.
Photo: Franco Arland/Getty Images
The post Scottish wizard out to cast spell on Boks appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.