3 min readJul 15, 2026 07:27 AM IST It wasn’t meant to be for Didier Deschamps and his men. France’s daunting run at the FIFA World Cup 2026 came to a sudden halt after a gut-wrenching 2-0 defeat to Spain in Arlington on Wednesday, ending their quest for a third straight World Cup final. Deschamps, who led France to glory in 2018, a final in 2022, and now a semifinal in 2026, bows out after a remarkable tenure at the helm. However, the sour taste of defeat left him questioning the level of refereeing in the match. Clearly unimpressed with Salvadoran official Iván Arcides Barton Cisneros, who took charge of the heavyweight clash, Deschamps questioned his ability to officiate a World Cup semifinal. “If I say anything, I’ll look like a sore loser because we lost,” Deschamps told reporters after the match. “But I ask you: is the referee up to the task of officiating a semifinal? There’s the penalty, but that’s not all; it adds to everything else. I have nothing against the referee …