ATLANTA — Players and coaches tried to downplay the emotional and political tensions ahead of the semifinal between England and Argentina.
Players said it was just a football match, and the contentious rivalry of the late-20th century was before their time.
But the moment the final whistle blew, Mercedes-Benz Stadium turned into an emotional and politically charged gathering.
Decades before Wednesday’s match, England and Argentina fought in the Falklands War, after Argentina invaded and unsuccessfully tried to take over the Falklands Islands in 1982. In England, arguably the bigger sore spot with Argentina is Diego Maradona’s “Hand of God” goal, but the two-month war looms large in Argentine memory. The islands, called “Las Malvinas” in Spanish, are frequent themes in soccer supporters’ songs, and signs littered throughout the country read “Las Malvinas Son Argentinas.”
Even Maradona called his handball goal “symbolic revenge” for the war.
After the win, as Argentine supporters sang and danced in the stands, the Argentina players laid down a banner on the pitch reading “Las Malvinas Son Argentinas” (“The Falklands Are Argentine”). Thousands of fans joined the players in jumping and singing “El que no salta, es un Inglés!” (“Whoever doesn’t jump is English!”).
FIFA previously didn’t punish players for singing a popular supporters song that includes lyrics about the Falklands after the win over Egypt. FIFA did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the post-match demonstration.
FIFA’s stadium code of conduct for the 2026 World Cup bans any items including banners and flags that are of a “political, offensive and/or discriminatory nature” that use any words that discriminate on account of “political opinion or any other opinion.” It also says people in the stadium cannot “curse or chant in a political, offensive and/or discriminatory manner or use foul or abusive language or obscene gestures.”
The Falklands and the roughly 650 Argentines who died during the war are constant fixtures in the songs chanted at matches, fan celebrations, and the players’ locker room:
- “El que no salta, es un Inglés!” (“Whoever doesn’t jump is English!”)
- “En Argentina nací, tierra de Diego y Lionel, de los pibes de Malvinas que jamás olvidaré” (“In Argentina I was born, land of Diego and Lionel, of the boys of the Falklands that I will never forget”)
- “Por Malvinas, por el Diego, por la última de Leo” (“For the Falklands, for Diego, for Leo’s last one”)
Years after the war, the Falklands are still part of the United Kingdom, but Argentina continues to make claims that they are not. Politicians from both countries made dueling claims about the territory in the lead-up to Wednesday’s match.
