Referee denies Mbappé penalty in World Cup opener as experts cry scandal, France beat Senegal 3-1

The incident

In the 58th minute, Mbappé dribbled into the box and went down after a sliding challenge from Senegal's Sadio Mané. Referee Alireza Faghani initially signalled no foul, then consulted the pitch-side monitor at VAR's insistence. After review, he stuck with his decision, later explaining that "the attacker initiated the contact." The no-call stunned players and fans.

The attacker initiated the contact.

Pundit fury

The decision provoked sharp reactions from television experts across the globe. Thomas Müller called it "scandalous," Alan Shearer labelled it "bizarre," and Pat Nevin dismissed Faghani's reasoning as "nonsense." Daniele Adani was equally emphatic, declaring it a penalty "all my life" and later dubbing Faghani "the worst referee in World Cup history."

That's just a stonewall foul. It's an absolute mystery, scandalous really, that there's no penalty.

I don't understand this. How can Mbappé initiate contact when he's in front? That's bizarre, really.

Match outcome

Despite the controversy, France rallied. Mbappé opened the scoring eight minutes after the disputed decision, finishing a through ball from Michael Olise. Substitute Bradley Barcola chipped in a second before Senegal's Ibrahim Mbaye pulled one back in stoppage time. Mbappé then sealed the 3-1 win with a long-range strike, becoming France's all-time top scorer with 58 international goals, surpassing Olivier Giroud.

Referee under scrutiny

Faghani's call may have consequences. Swiss television noted FIFA's tendency to sideline officials after high-profile errors; the referee had already been left off further assignments following a controversial decision at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. The incident also left confusion as a mix-up in Faghani's signal after the review caused players and spectators to briefly think a penalty had been awarded.

This is the worst referee in World Cup history.