How FIFA reacted to Louis Van Gaal’s claims 2022 World Cup was rigged for Messi’s Argentina

Louis van Gaal's bold claim that the 2022 World Cup was unfairly tilted in favour of Lionel Messi and Argentina has prompted a response from FIFA, the global football governing body, and the organizers of the tournament.

The esteemed Dutch manager guided the Netherlands to the quarterfinals of the global showpiece, where they were eventually defeated by a Messi-led Argentina side.

In that intense clash, the South Americans initially held a two-nil lead, but Van Gaal's team rallied dramatically to force the game into a post-match penalty shootout.

Unfortunately, they couldn't prevail in this crucial stage, allowing La Albiceleste to secure their third World Cup title after defeating Croatia in the semifinals and edging out France in the Grand Finale, Givemesport reports.

Since December 18, 2022, when Argentina proudly lifted the 18-carat trophy, doubts have been cast over the legitimacy of their victory, with many insinuating that the tournament was 'rigged' in their favour.

Most recently, van Gaal has revived and even amplified these allegations, suggesting that the manner in which Argentina scored most of their goals raised questions and labelled their triumph as 'premeditated,' according to GOAL.

FIFA responds to van Gaal's allegations
However, FIFA, in response to the former Barcelona and Manchester United coach, released a 46-second video on the X App (formerly known as Twitter).

The video showcased a compilation of Argentina's goals scored during the tournament, culminating with Gonzalo Montiel's decisive winning penalty, accompanied by the caption: "2022 belonged to Argentina."