World Cup 2026: Refereeing Standards Not Fit for the Biggest Stage

The biggest disappointment of the 2026 World Cup, measured against expectations, has been the refereeing. Nobody expected thrills from the group stage and round of 32 with 48 teams, but the officiating has still managed to shock. Take Donald Trump’s phone call – a man who has probably watched maybe one and a half football games in 80 years, and those were American football. He decided it wasn’t a foul, let alone a red card. After that, Infantino should end his tenure in disgrace. The real issue, however, lies with referees from Asia, Africa, and Central America who are not used to this pace. Uzbekistan’s Tantashev, who worked France vs. Paraguay, received the lowest possible score (a 1 on the familiar scale) from two respected outlets, one of which specializes in refereeing analysis. He was sent home without any disciplinary action. Americans Penso and Elfath, Salvadoran Barton, Iran’s Faghani, Morocco’s Jiyed, Egypt’s Amin Mohammed, Jordan’s Mahadmeh – all made glaring errors. VAR was supposed to fix this, but it hasn’t. Letexier in Argentina vs. Egypt made one clear mistake, corrected it after review, and the same publication that trashed Tantashev fully defended him. The match drew huge audiences: 7.3 million on FOX in the US, millions more on Telemundo and Peacock. In Spain, 3.75 million watched on RTVE, peaking at over 7 million. Argentina’s TV share hit 82‑85%. Such interest does not excuse poor officiating. Another talking point: the Mbappé penalty claim in the quarterfinal against Morocco. The experts say it wasn’t a penalty. The World Cup has become a training ground for referees who are still learning. That’s unacceptable for a tournament of this caliber.