Actor Gauahar Khan is not ready to pass over the debate around Egypt’s controversial FIFA World Cup 2026 defeat and took another dig at how Lionel Messi played during the match. Her remark comes a day after Egypt’s exit sparked widespread criticism of match officials, with the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) formally raising concerns about refereeing decisions and the use of VAR.
What Gauahar said
Gauahar reposted a reel from a page on her Instagram Stories where one man was seen enacting Messi’s performance during the match. Two other players lifted the third guy as he put the football inside the goal with his hands. In another dig, the guy was seen playacting how he failed to pass the ball and lifted it with his hands again! The referee was also seen declaring its a goal when he kicked the ball outside the goal but another small goal post was kept right beside it.
Gauahar penned a caption for the roast video and said, “Hahahahahah! On point!”
A day ago, Gauahar had slammed Messi for his theatrics during the match and said, “What a loser, messy not Messi. Actor of the saddest order.” Her comments came as frustration continued to grow in Egypt over several decisions made during the match officiated by French referee Francois Letexier.
Gauahar is an actor who started her career as a model, finishing fourth and winning the “Miss Talented” title at the Femina Miss India 2002 pageant. She made her acting debut in the Yash Raj Films production Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year (2009) alongside Ranbir Kapoor. Her other films include Ishaqzaade (2012) and Badrinath Ki Dulhania (2017). Her husband, Zaid Darbar, is currently participating in the reality show Alliance.
What happened during the match?
Egypt were particularly angered by two major calls. A Mostafa Ziko goal was ruled out after a VAR review spotted a foul in the build-up, and Hassan’s players later felt they should have had a penalty for a tug on Hamdy Fathy shortly before Argentina went down the other end and scored the winner.
Hours after the defeat, the EFA reportedly filed an official complaint against Letexier and the officiating crew. In a statement shared on social media, the federation said it could not remain silent about refereeing decisions and what it described as a failure to make proper use of the VAR system.
“The Egyptian Football Association cannot remain silent regarding the refereeing decisions witnessed during the match against Argentina as well as the failure to make appropriate use of the Video Assistant Referee [VAR] system,” the statement read.
