Argentina beat England 2-1 in the FIFA World Cup semi-final in Atlanta on Wednesday, sparking a political row over post-match celebrations.
The cheering players carry a banner given to them by the county fans”Las Malvinas son of Argentinas” – asserting in Spanish that the disputed Falkland Islands, where the UK and Argentina once fought a war, belong to Argentina.
Now, the UK government is urging FIFA to investigate the Argentine team.
“The World Cup may not be ours, but the Falkland Islands certainly are,” Prime Minister spokesman Keir Starmer said on Thursday. “Sovereignty lies with the people of the islands and our commitment to the Falklands will never waver.”
Starmer backed calls for FIFA to investigate, a spokesman said, after UK Business Secretary Peter Kyle said the players' behavior was “completely inappropriate.” Here's a look at what happened.
A heated argument
The Falkland Islands are a remote archipelago in the South Atlantic and a British overseas territory with a population of around 3,500. Argentina, which calls the islands Islas Malvinas, claims they were illegally seized in 1833.
(The islands are located about 13,000 km from the UK, and about 480 km from Argentina.)
Britain, which claims its territory dates back to 1765, sent a warship to the islands in 1833 to repel Argentine forces that wanted to establish sovereignty over the area.
They were attacked in 1982 under the orders of the then Argentine military dictatorship, which led to a 10-week war which was won by Britain. The battle killed 649 Argentine soldiers, 255 British workers and three islanders.
That dispute ended when the 1982 World Cup was held in Spain, where Argentina, England, Scotland and Northern Ireland played. British television networks refused to broadcast Argentina's opening game of the tournament, when the defending champions lost to Belgium.
“Sadly, it's a sad part of our history,” Argentine player Leandro Paredes said in Atlanta about the banner, “for all involved in that chapter, I repeat, our history. And it's sad. We knew we were playing for them too.”
What FIFA can do
FIFA can prosecute the Argentine players and the soccer federation because its disciplinary rules prohibit any “message inappropriate for a sporting event” in stadiums “including those that are “political, ideological, religious or offensive.”
FIFA fines for sending political messages range from about $5,000 US to $20,000 US (about $28,100 Cdns). FIFA was contacted by The Associated Press on Thursday for comment.
Argentina's president, Javier Milei, described the players' celebration with the banner as a “good performance,” saying the message “reflects the feelings shared by all Argentines.” But he said he expects FIFA to fine the team.
“What the players are doing is understandable; they are carried away by their emotions, they act recklessly, and that may lead to discussions about a penalty,” Milei told a Buenos Aires radio station.
Vice President Victoria Villarruel has been vocal in her support, posting a photo on social media of the players holding up a banner that read: “The Malvinas of Argentina! They stopped us from delivering [signs] we entered the field, forgetting that we carry ourselves in our blood and in our hearts.”
Past charges
Argentina's players displayed the same slogan “Las Malvinas son Argentinas” in a June 2014 warm-up match in Buenos Aires for the World Cup that started days later in Brazil.
The FIFA disciplinary panel's decision in the case was published after the tournament ended and fined Argentina's soccer federation 30,000 Swiss francs ($52,000 Cdn).
A FIFA disciplinary case under the previous leadership banned the South Korean player from two 2014 World Cup qualifiers for holding up the same banner over a venue claim against Japan at the 2012 London Olympics.
Park Jong-woo carried a fan banner with the slogan “Dokdo is our territory” – a reference to the group of small, disputed islands in the Sea of Japan – after South Korea defeated Japan in the men's bronze medal match.
In that case, FIFA's decision said the South Korean player's behavior “cannot be tolerated.”
Likewise, at the 2022 World Cup, FIFA fined the Serbian federation 20,000 francs ($34,700 Cdn) for hanging a political banner about the independent neighboring country Kosovo in the locker room before playing against Brazil. It showed a map of Serbia including Kosovo, which has been an independent country since 2008, and the slogan “No Surrender.”
FIFA's official political neutrality has been called into question at the World Cup after its president, Gianni Infantino, and the disciplinary process – which is now judging Argentina – appear to be under pressure from US President Donald Trump for allowing United States forward Folarin Balogun to play against Belgium in the round of 16.
Balogun was sent off in the previous round and FIFA disciplinary rules mandated that he be banned from his team's next game. FIFA postponed that suspension for a one-year trial, which caused controversy.
Belgium beat the US 4-1 to advance to the quarterfinals. Infantino is expected to stay with Trump at the World Cup on Sunday. Argentina plays Spain in East Rutherford, NJ
