Argentina’s World Cup semi-final victory over England was overshadowed moments after the final whistle when players held up a banner reading “Las Malvinas son Argentinas” – “The Falklands are Argentine” – igniting a political storm that has now landed at Fifa’s door.
Fifa confirmed its independent disciplinary committee is “assessing the match reports” and considering “the relevant circumstances before deciding on potential further steps based on the Fifa disciplinary code”. The governing body has previous form: Argentina’s football association was fined £20,000 in 2014 for holding the same banner before a friendly against Slovenia, a gesture Fifa then said breached rules on political action and team misconduct.
“Fifa investigates Argentina players who displayed a Falklands banner after World Cup win over England.”
The backlash was immediate. Downing Street, with Keir Starmer watching the match on a train to Ukraine, issued a pointed statement: “The World Cup might not be ours, but the Falkland Islands definitely are. Our commitment to the Falklands will never waver.” The prime minister endorsed business secretary Peter Kyle’s call for investigation; Kyle told the BBC the banner was “an egregious violation of the rules of not having political activity as part of the football”.
The Falkland Islands Government wrote directly to Fifa, expressing “disappointment” and calling the banner “particularly insensitive for many people in the Falklands”, given the trauma of the 1982 invasion. The war, which lasted 74 days, killed 649 Argentine and 255 British servicemen, plus three islanders. In 2013, a referendum saw 1,513 of 1,517 votes cast in favour of remaining a UK overseas territory.
Argentina’s president, Javier Milei, called the players’ action “understandable” and “valid”, but stressed in comments to Radio El Observador that “the things that happen on the pitch are not part of diplomacy”. He added: “Indeed, the Malvinas are Argentine, we are going to recover them, and we’re going to do it in the diplomatic field.”
Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey went further, calling for any players who celebrated with the banner to be barred from Sunday’s final against Spain. Starmer, asked whom he would support in that match, replied: “The PM wishes both teams well for the final, especially Spain.”
The controversy echoes a similar incident in 2024 when Spain players Rodri and Álvaro Morata were banned for one match by Uefa for chanting “Gibraltar is Spanish” during Euro victory celebrations. Whether Fifa will impose sanctions on Argentina – and whether any players will miss the final – now rests on the disciplinary committee’s assessment.
