Expectations poured in ahead of the World Cup collapsed in an instant. Chinese referee Ma Ning was effectively expelled from Asia's biggest stage after a fatal officiating controversy, creating a shocking situation.
Saudi Arabia's Okaz reported on the 21st (Korea time) that China's Ma Ning left Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, after the erroneous call controversy. It added that the referees committee decided to remove him from the tournament roster, and that he was effectively excluded from the ACL stage.
The controversial scenes came during the 2025-2026 season Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League Elite quarterfinal between Al Ittihad and FC Machida Zelvia. The match result was Machida's 1-0 win, but the incidents became the center of controversy. Questions arose that the attacking move that led to Tete Yengi's 31st-minute winning goal in the first half had started from an offside position.
The controversy did not end there. Just before the end of the second half, Al Ittihad scored an equalizer with Danilo Pereira's header, but referee Ma Ning overturned the goal after a VAR review, ruling it out for handball. Both scenes that shook the flow of the match led to decisions that undermined confidence in the officiating.
The mood at the scene was tense immediately after the match. Manager Sérgio Conceição sharply criticized at a press conference, "It was a fierce match, but the worst team on the pitch was the refereeing crew. We deserved to get the result of victory. The influence the referees had in this match is obvious to anyone." He added, "The referees robbed us of our victory," showing no restraint in his dissatisfaction with the decisions.
The ripple effects spread quickly. According to Okaz, Ma Ning had initially been highly regarded to the point of being mentioned as a candidate to referee the final of this tournament, but he lost the referees committee's trust because of this controversy. He was eventually notified of his removal from the tournament roster and left the venue in disgrace.
This incident shakes symbolism beyond an individual problem. Ma Ning had recently attracted great attention after being selected as a referee for the 2026 Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) North and Central America World Cup. He was hailed in Chinese football circles as a historic achievement and drew concentrated expectations. However, this officiating controversy has inevitably caused a major blow to his reputation.
Referee credibility is more important than anything ahead of the World Cup because a single match decision can lead to debate over the fairness of an entire international tournament. The situation surrounding Ma Ning has become a case that confirms how strict the standards required on the international stage are, beyond a simple erroneous call controversy.
[OSEN]