It was an emotional summer at the FIFA World Cup for Egypt soccer coach Hossam Hassan, who led the nation to the Round of 16 before a controversial defeat to Argentina.
It turns out the twists and turns of his summer were just beginning, though, after his two wives reportedly got into a fight at a hotel in Egypt.
While attempting to break up the fight, Hassan fainted and was sent to the hospital, The Sun reported.
The fight included hair-pulling, and relatives of the Egypt soccer coach also got involved, per the report.
Partial video of the incident was posted online in the aftermath of the fighting, which happened in front of a small crowd.
In the video, which can be seen below, loud screams are heard while a group of people appear to be involved in a brawl that reportedly included staff members, too.
Under Egypt law, a Muslim man is allowed to have up to four wives simultaneously, according to The Sun.
Hassan is said to have been with his first wife, Howaida Al-Gharbawi, for decades, and the pair had three children together; The Egypt coach married his second wife, Dan Adam, in 2015.
Following the hotel fight, which left both women with cuts and bruises, Hassan reportedly divorced his first wife Al-Gharbawi. A legal representative of Adam, said that Al-Gharbawi committed a premeditated attack on Hassan’s second wife.
“We hoped it wouldn’t come to divorce, but things escalated to this level,” Mohamed Shams, a legal representative for Adam, told Sky News Arabia.
One of the Egypt coach’s marriages ending in controversy was somewhat of a reminder of how his team exited the World Cup in Atlanta.
Egypt led the game 2-0 before a late comeback by Argentina to escape with a 3-2 win. During the game, Egypt had a goal disallowed after video review due to a foul on an Argentina player in the build up to the scoring play.
Hassan also felt like a foul should have been called on Argentina before it scored the decisive goal in the 92nd minute.
“We haven’t seen respect or fair play,” Hassan said after the loss to Argentina. “There seems to have been pressure on the Argentinian side on the referee that has brought about this outcome.”
“Life is unfair. The world is unfair. OK, but why isn’t there any fairness in sports?” Hassan asked rhetorically.
“I’m not convinced by this outcome and by the way things unfolded in this match. The referee is unfair, God is sufficient for me and the best disposer of affairs. He’s wasting the effort of an entire nation. The cup is directed towards Argentina,” he added.
Argentina, led by superstar Lionel Messi, went on to reach the World Cup final match before Spain won 1-0 to capture the trophy in New Jersey.
