What does Hossam Hassan’s ‘X’ gesture mean in Argentina vs Egypt FIFA World Cup 2026 clash?
Hossam Hassan made the gesture towards the referee during the Argentina vs Egypt clash.
Egypt suffered a heartbreaking 3-2 loss to Argentina in a Round of 16 fixture in the ongoing FIFA World Cup 2026 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, on July 7. However, the match was marred by late controversy, with the African side later complaining of biased officiating from French referee Francois Letexier.
The biggest criticism came from the Egyptian head coach, Hossam Hassan. The 59-year-old labelled the referee “unfair” and said that he is “wasting the effort of an entire nation”.
“The cup is directed towards Argentina. We haven’t seen respect or fair play,” Hassan said. “A penalty was ruled out, and a second (incident) that should have been checked for a penalty for us was not even checked by the VAR. A second goal was remarkably, for whatever reason, disallowed.”
The head coach added that he would not be watching any upcoming matches in the expanded 48-team edition in North America as a sign of protest.
Also Read: FIFA World Cup 2026 updated bracket after Argentina vs Egypt
Hossam Hassan’s ‘X’ gesture
Another controversial moment came late in the contest. Egypt were leading 2-0 courtesy of goals from Yasser Ibrahim and Mostafa Ziko. Cristian Romero pulled one back in the 79th minute before Lionel Messi equalised in the 83rd minute. Enzo Fernandez netted the winner in the 92nd minute.
Moments before that, Mohamed Salah was involved in a scuffle in the Argentine box. However, the Egyptian’s claim for a penalty was quickly waved away, and the incident was not reviewed by VAR even though Fernandez scored at the other end from that move.
The African side protested loudly following the fifth goal. In the chaos, a member of the Egyptian staff was shown a red card, while a couple of players were shown yellow cards. Hossam Hassan then did an ‘X’ gesture towards the referee, but was remarkably shown a yellow card for that.
What does ‘X’ gesture mean?
Controversy arose when fans decoded the meaning of the ‘X’ gesture made by the Egyptian head coach. The gesture, introduced by FIFA in 2024, is used by players and support staff to indicate to the referee that they have experienced racist abuse during the game.
Once the referee is made aware of this, they are instructed to follow the three-step procedure depending on the situation: stop the match, suspend the match, or abandon the match.
However, in Hassan’s case, not only did the match continue, but the Egyptian was also shown a yellow card. In fact, African journalist Micky Jnr said that Hassan may face further disciplinary action for his gesture towards the referee, although this claim has not been verified.
What does the ‘X’ gesture mean in football?
The ‘X’ gesture is a universal signal introduced by FIFA in2024 used to indicate racist abuse during a match.
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Sushruta has spent over two years covering football, with a particular focus on Indian and international competitions. Alongside football, he has reported on a variety of sports, bringing curiosity and perspective to every story. When he’s not following the action, he can usually be found binge-watching movies or getting lost in a good book.