Uzbek referee Ilgiz Tantashev took charge of France’s 1-0 World Cup Round of 16 win over Paraguay and has come under heavy fire for his handling of a rough, physical match. Paraguay committed more fouls than France (13 to 11), yet every yellow card of the match — three total — went to French players, with none shown to Paraguay.
Mbappé, who scored the winning penalty in the 70th minute, criticized Paraguay’s physical approach afterward and also questioned the officiating. French sports outlet L’Équipe reportedly gave Tantashev the lowest possible mark for his performance, saying he lost control of the game. Fans and pundits online piled on too, with some calling it one of the worst-officiated matches of the tournament.
The penalty itself was contentious — Tantashev initially waved away a foul on France’s Désiré Doué before VAR intervened and sent him to review the monitor, after which he awarded the spot kick that Mbappé converted. He was also criticized for not stepping in when Paraguay’s players seemingly tried to scuff the penalty spot before the kick.
It was Tantashev’s first World Cup, and he’s known for a more hands-off, let-the-game-flow style — which seems to be exactly what fueled the backlash here. I haven’t seen anything yet from FIFA confirming an official review, just widespread public and media pressure for one
