Accusations have surfaced that FIFA and match officials orchestrated events to deliver Argentina and Lionel Messi to the World Cup final, including claims of a symbolic handover to younger rival Lamine Yamal. A former assistant referee refutes this, asserting that officials function with complete autonomy, divorced from FIFA's administrative apparatus and free from any directional pressure.

Referees are drawn from across the globe, representing different football confederations and nations, housed separately from FIFA leadership, and engaged in gruelling daily routines of preparation, training, and match analysis that leave minimal room for external manipulation. Though officials inevitably commit errors in a sport defined by speed and complexity, this former official contends such mistakes stem from sport's inherent challenges rather than evidence of systematic bias or choreographed outcomes. The accusations have prompted public defences from FIFA's refereeing leadership and have contributed to an online climate of abuse directed at match officials.