Fake News Spreads on Social Media

A viral screenshot of a Wikipedia article about French soccer referee François Letexier has sparked a heated debate about his alleged Jewish upbringing. The claim, however, has been thoroughly debunked by fact-checkers.

Source: s.yimg.com

The controversy began after Egypt’s loss to Argentina in the 2026 FIFA World Cup. A post on X by @doctor_rahmeh claimed that Letexier, the French referee, had grown up in an ‘Orthodox Jewish family.’ The post included a collage of two screenshots of a Wikipedia page, one dated July 7, 2026, and the other dated July 8, 2026.

Source: s.yimg.com

The July 7 screenshot read: ‘François Letexier was born on 23 April 1989 in Bédée, Brittany, northwestern France into an Orthodox Jewish family.’ In contrast, the July 8 screenshot removed any mention of Letexier’s alleged Jewish upbringing.

Source: s.yimg.com

But how did this false information spread on Wikipedia? It’s a classic case of vandalism and misinformation. The edits were made after Egypt’s defeat, and they linked to unverified sources, including a 2017 article by Le Point. However, the article didn’t mention anything about Letexier’s supposed Jewishness.

As the Wikipedia page continued to undergo changes, more unsourced allegations emerged, including claims of general corruption and even a statement that Letexier was ‘the worst judge who ever lived.’ No credible sources were provided to support these claims.

Lead Stories conducted an in-depth investigation to verify the claims. We checked Letexier’s profile on the French Football Federation’s website, as well as its news section and a YouTube video interview. None of these sources mentioned his alleged Jewish upbringing.

A Google search for Letexier’s name on the Union of European Football Associations’ website returned mostly short reports about his appointments. Several articles featuring his quotes didn’t discuss his upbringing.

A similar Google search across the FIFA website showed multiple pages dedicated to Letexier’s work, including a profile that mentioned the word ‘Jewish’ in a context unrelated to the French referee.

In conclusion, the claim that François Letexier grew up in an ‘Orthodox Jewish family’ is entirely unfounded and lacks credible evidence. The changes made to the Wikipedia page were a result of vandalism and misinformation, which have now been corrected.

Fact-Checking the Claim

Lead Stories reviewed the oldest available archived version of the Le Point article, saved in 2017, and found that it didn’t discuss anything remotely close to the claim reviewed in this fact check. The article primarily focused on Letexier’s career.

We also checked the French version of the Wikipedia page about Letexier and found that it didn’t mention his alleged Jewish upbringing. However, earlier it was also affected by frivolous changes of the content, including a claim that Letexier ‘robbed Egypt of the victory to pro-Israel Nazi Argentina.’

Letexier’s profile on the website of the French Football Federation and its news section, as well as a YouTube video interview, didn’t mention his alleged Jewish upbringing. A Google search for Letexier’s name on the Union of European Football Associations’ website returned mostly short reports about his appointments. Several articles featuring his quotes didn’t discuss his upbringing.

Conclusion

The claim that François Letexier grew up in an ‘Orthodox Jewish family’ is entirely unfounded and lacks credible evidence. The changes made to the Wikipedia page were a result of vandalism and misinformation, which have now been corrected.

It’s essential to verify information before sharing it on social media to prevent the spread of misinformation.