France's head coach Didier Deschamps has dismissed the growing controversy over FIFA's decision to include an all-Argentinian refereeing team for his team’s FIFA World Cup 2026 quarter-finals meeting with Morocco. With this game so big, Deschamps has said France is only concerned with beating Morocco, not who referees the match.
France go into the quarterfinals as one of the strongest teams in the tournament thanks to Kylian Mbappé. Les Bleus have been unstoppable in attack, having scored a tournament-best 14 goals so far. Mbappé, Ousmane Dembélé, Michael Olise and Bradley Barcola make up one of the most dangerous forward lines in the World Cup with a lot of danger for the opposing defence.
In their way is a fearless Morocco side that has once again captured the imagination of football fans. The Atlas Lions have earned a place in the last eight as their team captain Achraf Hakimi led them to a penalty shootout victory in dramatic fashion over the Netherlands. Morocco is the first African team to reach the World Cup semifinal in 2022, and they are going to go one step further.
The match also brings back memories of their 2022 World Cup semifinal meeting when France ended Morocco's dream run to the final. Morocco will be determined to rewrite that story again, but this time, Morocco will do it differently.
Despite the excitement of the match, much of the conversation before the big game is about FIFA’s decision to pick an entirely Argentinian refereeing crew, led by referee Facundo Tello. With the rivalry between France and Argentina still very much unresolved after the unforgettable 2022 World Cup final, the appointment has raised many fans’ eyebrows.
Deschamps, however, sees no reason for concern.
"We have to deal with it. I trust the referees, our opponent is Morocco, not the referee," the France boss said.
France goalkeeper Robin Risser also backed the officials, acknowledging that there is still some tension between France and Argentina but stressing that it should have no bearing on the game.
"There is some bitterness between France and Argentina since the last game, but that’s part of football,"* Risser said. *"If these referees are here, it’s because they’ve earned their place and are good enough for this level."
The refereeing debate comes after a World Cup match in the Round of 16 where Argentina came from two goals down to beat Egypt. Egypt striker Mostafa Zico had a goal disallowed on a VAR review after the match, and Egypt’s coach Hossam Hassan accused the officials of making wrong decisions and questioned the integrity of the tournament.
Deschamps, however, refused to be drawn into the controversy and instead praised the standard of officiating.
"Let's hope our officials are as good as Monsieur Letexier was," he said.
With a place in the World Cup semifinals on the line, France and Morocco are set to produce one of the biggest games in the tournament. While referee appointments have dominated the headlines in the build-up, Deschamps has made it clear that France’s focus is on Morocco and the challenge that has been posed by them and also to win the World Cup.
