Argentina players raise Falklands banner after beating England
Lisandro Martinez and Giovani Lo Celso displayed a Malvinas message after Argentina’s World Cup semifinal win, raising questions under FIFA rules.
By Lucas Ferreira · Science & Environment Writer
2 min read
Argentina players displayed a banner asserting the country’s claim to the Falkland Islands after beating England in a World Cup semifinal, Reuters reported. The gesture matters because FIFA’s stadium rules restrict political material inside venues.
According to Reuters, Lisandro Martinez and Giovani Lo Celso held up a banner reading “Las Malvinas Son Argentinas,” meaning “The Falklands are Argentinian,” after Argentina’s 2-1 win over England on Wednesday. An Associated Press photo caption from the match in Atlanta identified Lo Celso holding the message at the end of the game, while teammate Nicolas Otamendi gestured toward him.
Reuters reported that Martinez and Lo Celso smiled as they lifted the banner and waved toward supporters. It was not clear where the banner came from, according to Reuters.
FIFA rules at issue
FIFA’s Stadium Code of Conduct bars “banners, flags, flyers, apparel and other paraphernalia that are of a political, offensive, and/or discriminatory nature” inside stadiums, according to Al Jazeera. Reuters described the display as an apparent violation of those rules.
Al Jazeera said FIFA did not immediately respond to its request for comment on Wednesday. No disciplinary action was reported in the material available.
The display followed one of the most politically loaded fixtures in international football. Reuters noted that sovereignty over the South Atlantic islands remains a longstanding point of tension between Argentina and Britain.
A dispute tied to war and identity
The islands are known in Britain as the Falklands and in Argentina as the Malvinas, according to Reuters. The two countries fought a brief war over them in 1982, in which 649 Argentinian soldiers and 255 British soldiers died.
Reuters reported that Britain won that conflict. The report also said the overwhelming majority of island residents have stated that they want to remain part of Britain.
Argentina’s position, as described by Reuters, is that it inherited the islands from Spain after independence in 1816. Argentina also argues that Britain seized control in 1833 through an unlawful colonial act, Reuters reported.
The banner was not the first political symbol to appear around the 2026 World Cup, according to Al Jazeera. Last month in Los Angeles, Iranian Americans waved pre-revolutionary Iranian flags during Iran matches; Al Jazeera described those flags as protest symbols against the government in Tehran.
Al Jazeera reported that those Iran matches went ahead without incident. The account did not say whether FIFA took action over those displays.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.