&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Deschamps questions referee’s credentials after France’s semifinal loss to Spain")
Outgoing France head coach Didier Deschamps questioned the match referee, Ivan Barton from El Salvador, about his credentials following his team’s exit from the 2026 World Cup. Spain beat France 2-0 to knock them out of the tournament and qualify for their second-ever World Cup final – the first since lifting their only FIFA crown in 2010 in South Africa. Deschamps, who will leave his job as the national team coach following the World Cup exit, and will now be replaced by Zinedine Zidane, admitted the players were devastated by the loss.
Despite scoring 16 goals in the lead-up to the first semifinal, eight of which were scored by Kylian Mbappé – the joint-most with Lionel Messi in this tournament - France failed to breach Spain’s defence, which has conceded just one goal so far in this World Cup.
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"Of course, there is a lot of disappointment," Deschamps said immediately after the defeat at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. "The players are devastated because we had a lot of ambition, even though we also have to be realistic and acknowledge that today we were a notch below on the technical level against a team that controlled the game well.
"But first of all, it's our fault. I don't want to blame anyone."
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FIFA World Cup 2026 Live on Zee5 Photograph: (WION)
The coach, however, couldn’t resist firing shots at referee Barton, who awarded Spain a penalty after Digne’s ‘unintentional’ foul on Yamal in the first half.
"I'll ask a loaded question, and I won't answer it," Deschamps said. "Is the referee at the level required to officiate a World Cup semifinal?
"And I'm not saying this just because we lost today. There were quite a few situations. There were some favourable calls, too," he said, without elaborating.
Meanwhile, France is not entirely out of the tournament, as they will participate in the 3rd-4th place match, which determines who will finish third; France will face the loser of the second semifinal between England and Argentina.
