Officiating has been heavily criticised by players and coaches; governing body also delayed sanctions in 2022
Fifa will take disciplinary action on all individuals who made vocal criticism of referees and officiating at the World Cup, but it plans to wait until after the tournament.
Match officials have come under repeated scrutiny from players and coaches since the competition began, with England manager Thomas Tuchel, Switzerland defender Manuel Akanji and Egypt coach Hossam Hassan among those to question refereeing performances.
The usual practice in club competitions is to review the case and issue fines or bans as soon as possible, but any sanctions by Fifa at this tournament will be considered only once the tournament has finished, according to sources.
The approach follows the pattern established after the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, when Fifa waited until the competition had ended before taking action against several member associations.
Decisions made by world football’s governing body are expected to depend on referees’ reports and other circumstances surrounding each incident.
Tuchel was among those to criticise officials after England’s last-16 victory over Mexico, when defender Jarell Quansah was sent off by the Australian referee Alireza Faghani.
“It’s not good enough,” Tuchel said. “He [the referee] can send any team out in any moment. It’s just not good enough. It’s just erratic, it’s just unreliable in matches.
“Now, we have two fourth officials who just scream at you if you put one foot out of a coaching zone. It’s just not good enough.”
Even more critical comments came from Egypt after their 2-2 defeat by Argentina in the round of 16. Their player, Mostafa Ziko, said the match was rigged.
“[The referee] wasted all of our efforts with his decisions,” Ziko said. “We were leading 2-0 and we cannot do anything. It’s all up to God. We wanted to make you all happy. It was not in the cards. It was the referee. The cup is directed towards Argentina.”
Head coach Hossam Hassan said: “We were the best in everything, but the result was … there were factors influencing it, not external, but internal on the pitch, and external before the match.
“It is clear that the pressure put on the referee before the match by the Argentine side succeeded, because they objected to the referee, bringing up France, and the France national team. There seems to have been pressure on the Argentine side on the referee that has brought about this outcome.”
After losing to Argentina, Switzerland’s Manuel Akanji also claimed the referee favoured the defending champions.
“When you have the referee against you, it becomes difficult,” Akanji said. “Every little thing was called against us. Every dive and every foul by the Argentinians went unpunished.
“I don’t usually say anything against the officials, but I’ve never experienced such a one-sided game as today.”
