'VAR-gentina?': conspiracy theories swirl ahead of World Cup semi-finals
Online conspiracy theories claim Argentina benefited from disputed refereeing and VAR calls, while FIFA officials rejected the allegations as unfounded.
- Argentina advanced to a World Cup semi-final against England in Atlanta on Wednesday, led by captain Lionel Messi. However, online conspiracy theories have emerged claiming, without evidence, that the tournament's playing field has been tilted in the defending champions' favor.
- Critics point to contentious refereeing decisions as evidence of favoritism. Most notably, captain Messi received no sanction after raking his studs down Algeria skipper Aissa Mandi in the 30th minute during a group stage win.
- Egypt's staff were outraged by French referee Francois Letexier's decisions during a 3-2 loss, while Switzerland's coach Murat Yakin called a VAR ruling "completely unacceptable" after his team was reduced to 10 men.
- USA Today columnist Nancy Armour dismissed the rigging allegations, writing that critics "have to do better than this." FIFA referees' chief Pierluigi Collina rejected Egyptian complaints as "unfounded."
- Wednesday's semi-final against England in Atlanta awaits Argentina, who have faced opponents ranked 19th or lower throughout their tournament run. The squad now focuses on the upcoming match despite persistent online narratives questioning the tournament's integrity.
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Atlanta. Lionel Messi guided the Argentine team to the semifinals of the 2026 World Cup, where he will play a high-voltage match tomorrow against England. But the path of the world champions to this instance has been wrapped up by conspiracy theories on the Internet that claim they have been benefited by arbitral decisions and a benevolent draw.
'VAR-gentina?' A breakdown of the conspiracy theories ahead of the World Cup semi-finals
From Lionel Messi's controversial escape against Algeria to Egypt’s VAR fury, we dissect the major incidents that have sent internet sleuths and opposing managers into meltdown.
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Bias Distribution
- 36% of the sources are Center, 36% of the sources lean Right
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