Hassan received a second yellow card for making FIFA’s crossed-arms anti-racism signal during Egypt’s 3-2 World Cup defeat to Argentina, a match later cited by France coach Didier Deschamps amid wider refereeing scrutiny.
Egypt head coach Hossam Hassan was shown a second yellow card after making FIFA’s crossed-arms anti-racism “X” gesture during his side’s 3-2 World Cup Round of 16 loss to Argentina on July 7, in what was described as the first use of the signal in a World Cup match. Egypt were angered by several decisions from French referee François Letexier, including a disallowed goal and rejected penalty appeals, and a member of the coaching staff was also sent off late in the game. FIFA introduced the gesture in 2024 to report racist abuse, but Hassan used it during a dispute over officiating rather than alleged crowd abuse, prompting debate over its intended scope. The match later resurfaced in wider tournament discussion when France coach Didier Deschamps, commenting on July 9 about an all-Argentine referee crew appointed for France’s quarter-final against Morocco, said he hoped the officials would perform as well as Letexier did against Egypt despite Egyptian complaints.