Argentina could face possible punishments for their post-match actions after defeating England 2-1 in the World Cup semi-finals, with Cristian Romero, the Spurs skipper, front and centre
Tottenham captain Cristian Romero was front and centre as Argentina players celebrated their World Cup semi-final victory over England – by holding a banner about the Falkland Islands on the pitch.
Argentina boss Lionel Scaloni had said before the game he did not want the fixture to become about the conflict over the British overseas territory. But after his side came from 1-0 down with five minutes left to win 2-1 to reach a second successive World Cup final, players held up a banner that read ‘Las Malvinas son Argentinas’ which translates to ‘The Falkland Islands are Argentinian’.
Now Argentine players and the AFA could face sanctions from FIFA over incident. UEFA previously handed one match bans to Rodri and Alvaro Morata after the pair chanted ‘Gibraltar is Spanish’ during Euro 2024 celebrations.
Indeed, an investigation into their actions has been been demanded by U.K. Business Secretary Peter Kyle. He told the BBC: “Politics needs to be separate from football. In fact, the World Cup has one of its central tenets that politics is separate from football. That is now a matter for FIFA. I expect FIFA to do its investigation thoroughly.”
Political tensions linger between Argentina and Great Britain over the Falkland Islands, a British overseas territory which boiled over into conflict in 1982 when Argentine forces launched an invasion of the islands, prompting a British military response.
The ensuing 74-day war claimed the lives of 255 British service personnel, 649 Argentine troops and three Falkland Islanders, before the islands returned to British control. Following Argentina’s continued claims of sovereignty over the islands, a 2013 referendum saw 99.8% of Falkland Islanders want to keep their status as a British overseas territory.
Argentina vice-president Victoria Villarruel had described England as “invaders” and “usurping pirates” in the build-up to the fixture, declaring: “Tomorrow we play against the usurping pirates. This isn’t just another match.
“I’m not going to be politically correct or cold-hearted; against the English, it’s always something more. It’s the Malvinas, it’s Diego, it’s Leo last one, and it’s putting the brakes on the invaders.”
She tweeted a victory message at full-time by saying, “it wasn’t just another match” alongside a video of what appeared to be Argentinian soldiers.
FIFA and its lawmakers, the International Football Association Board (IFAB), have a firm position on teams displaying political banners.
“Equipment must not have any political, religious or personal slogans, statements or images,” states the IFAB rulebook. “Players must not reveal undergarments that show political, religious, personal slogans, statements or images, or advertising other than the manufacturer’s logo.
“For any offence the player and/or the team will be sanctioned by the competition organiser, national football association or by FIFA.”
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