‘Malvinas are Argentinian’: World Cup holders celebrate win over England with Falklands banner | World Cup 2026
Argentine players celebrated their World Cup victory against England with the following banner:Son of Las Malvinas Argentina”, a reference to the 1982 Falklands war.
Trailing 1-0 with five minutes left in the semi-final in Atlanta, Argentina recovered and scored two consecutive goals to reach their second consecutive World Cup final, where they will face Spain in New Jersey on Sunday.
The banner refers to the region called the Falkland Islands in the UK and the Islas Malvinas in Argentina, which led to 74 days of conflict 44 years ago. More than 900 people, including 649 Argentinians and 255 Britons, lost their lives in the clashes.
Lisandro Martínez and Giovani Lo Celso held up the banner, grinned and waved to the fans in the stands. It was not clear where the banner came from. This is not the first time the issue of political banners has come up during the World Cup. In Los Angeles last month, Iranian Americans waved pre-revolutionary flags, a symbol of protest against Tehran’s government, as Iran played. These matches proceeded without incident.
Some Argentine players, who had beaten Switzerland in the quarter-finals to set up a clash with England, were heard chanting: “For the Malvinas, for Diego” [Maradona] and for Leo [Messi]the last one.”
Argentine midfielder Rodrigo De Paul said: “We understand that this is a football match that transcends; it is a reminder of what Diego did. We sing songs about our Malvinas heroes, mostly to remember them, but we must understand that this is a football match and the Malvinas must be discussed elsewhere. What happened was an atrocity and we always remember those who died, but what we want is to win this match and get to the final.”
FIFA’s stadium code of conduct prohibits “banners, flags, flyers, clothing and other paraphernalia of a political, offensive and/or discriminatory nature” in stadiums. FIFA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Argentine security minister Alejandra Monteoliva said on Tuesday that increased security was discussed at a meeting in the United States on Monday. “There will be 1,600 police officers. We want the celebration to be peaceful,” he told local radio in Argentina. “The entry of elements containing any provocative message of political or racial content is prohibited.”
