BOSTON, July 9 (V7N) – FIFA has come under mounting criticism after appointing an all-Argentine officiating team for Thursday's FIFA World Cup quarter-final between France and Morocco, a decision that has sparked controversy following recent refereeing disputes involving Argentina.

The backlash comes just days after Egypt called for an investigation into French referee François Letexier and the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) team, alleging several controversial decisions favoured Argentina during Tuesday's 3-2 defeat that eliminated Egypt from the Round of 16.

On Tuesday, FIFA announced the match officials for the France-Morocco quarter-final. Football fans quickly noted that, for the first time in the tournament's 96 matches, all five on-field and off-field officials are from the same country—Argentina.

The appointment has drawn criticism because France has faced Argentina in each of the last two World Cup knockout stages. France defeated Argentina 4-3 in the 2018 Round of 16, while Argentina won the 2022 World Cup final on penalties after a 3-3 draw.

French sports outlet RMC Sport strongly criticised FIFA's decision, saying the world football governing body had shown "no shame" in making the appointments.

The decision also triggered widespread debate on social media, with some users accusing FIFA of showing bias toward Argentina, although no evidence has been presented to support those claims.

Argentine referee Facundo Tello will oversee the France-Morocco quarter-final. He also officiated the France-Morocco semi-final at the 2022 World Cup.

His fellow Argentines Juan Pablo Belatti and Gabriel Chade will serve as assistant referees, while Dario Herrera has been appointed fourth official and Cristian Navarro as reserve assistant referee.

France defender Dayot Upamecano downplayed the controversy, saying the team remains focused on the match rather than the officiating.

"We're not going to focus on who the referee is. We've never done that before. Our focus is on Morocco. We want to win the match—that's what matters most," Upamecano said.