FIFA have confirmed that match reports are being assessed as pressure to sanction Argentina for holding a banner referencing the Falkland Islands ramps up.
Several of the Albiceleste’s Premier League stars were involved in a post-match stunt after their World Cup semi-final win over England.
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The defending world champions came from behind to score two late goals in Atlanta on Wednesday to book their place in Sunday’s final.
During their post-game celebrations, Argentina players held up a banner reading ‘Las Malvinas son Argentinas’, which translates to ‘The Falklands are Argentine’.
Tottenham captain Cristian Romero, Manchester United’s Lisandro Martinez and Giovani Lo Celso were all pictured holding the flag.
FIFA and the International Football Association Board (IFAB) supposedly have a hard line against political flags, slogans and symbols being displayed.
Political point scoring in reference to the Falklands, a British overseas territory in the south-west Atlantic Ocean that Argentina believes they have sovereign rights over, would fall into this category.
As a result, many have called for FIFA to sanction Argentine players for their actions, similar to how UEFA banned Spain players Rodri and Alvaro Morata for one match after they chanted ‘Gibraltar is Spanish’ following their 2-1 victory over England in the Euro 2024 final.
FIFA ‘assessing reports’ over Falklands banner
A FIFA spokesman said: “As is standard procedure, FIFA’s independent Disciplinary Committee is currently assessing the match reports and considering the relevant circumstances before deciding on potential further steps based on the FIFA Disciplinary Code.”
It is the latest controversy Argentina have found themselves wrapped up in following unfounded claims of an unfair bias towards Lionel Messi and co throughout their World Cup defence.
The country’s FA are also reportedly under investigation by the FBI for alleged money laundering and fraud in the United States.
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Falklands War timeline
March 19, 1982: Argentine scrap metal workers raise their flag on South Georgia Island, causing diplomatic friction and accelerating Argentina’s invasion plans.
April 2, 1982: Argentine forces launch Operation Rosario and successfully occupy the Falkland Islands after forcing the outnumbered British garrison to surrender.
April 3–5, 1982: The United Nations demands an Argentine withdrawal while British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher authorises a massive naval task force to retake the islands.
April 25, 1982: British special forces recapture South Georgia Island after damaging an Argentine submarine and forcing the local garrison to surrender.
May 2, 1982: A British submarine torpedoes and sinks the Argentine cruiser ARA General Belgrano outside the exclusion zone, resulting in 323 casualties and effectively ending early peace negotiations.
May 4, 1982: Argentine aircraft retaliate by striking the British destroyer HMS Sheffield with an Exocet missile, causing the ship to sink days later.
May 21–28, 1982: British troops establish a secure beachhead at San Carlos and win the war’s first major land battle at Goose Green.
June 11–14, 1982: Following fierce battles on the mountains surrounding the capital, Argentine forces surrender to the British at Port Stanley, ending active combat.
March 2013: Falkland Islanders vote overwhelmingly in a referendum to remain a British Overseas Territory, a result recognised by the UK but dismissed by Argentina.
December 2023: Argentine President Javier Milei takes office, maintaining Argentina’s constitutional claim to the islands but advocating for a long-term diplomatic solution.
Mid-2026: Diplomatic tensions flare as the UK reiterates its defence of the islanders’ self-determination while President Milei publicly reaffirms Argentina’s sovereign rights.
Argentina even have previous for Falklands-related stunts, having once been fined £20,000 by FIFA for a similar banner.
The Argentina team, which had Messi on the bench, posed with a banner before a 2-0 friendly win against Slovenia in 2014.
A year before, the people of the Falkland Islands had voted overwhelmingly in favour of remaining a UK overseas territory.
At the time of their ruling, football’s governing body said that Argentina infringed rules on political action and team misconduct.
Falklands ‘hope’ FIFA sanction Argentina again
The government of the Falkland Islands said: “The Falklands government is disappointed – though regrettably not surprised – that the Argentine football team decided to tarnish the result of last night’s World Cup football semi-final – a game that did not in any case involve the Falkland Islands.
“That said, it is hardly news to anyone that the people of the Islands were victims of an aggressive invasion in 1982, which left many traumatised.
“The banner displayed by Argentina last night, therefore, was particularly insensitive for many people in the Falklands.”
They continued: “It is the avowed policy of the Falkland Islands Government that we do not wish to see politics being brought into sport.
“Nor do we wish the Islands and their people to be used as a political football in every conversation about England and Argentina.”
It also added its hope that FIFA will ‘sanction all behaviour of this nature in line with its own rules’.
