After calls for an investigation into Argentina’s ‘The Malvinas are Argentine’ banner, the White House has weighed in.
The banner appeared at the Men’s World Cup semi-final, which saw Argentina win over England. 2-1.
It translated to ‘The Falkland Islands are Argentinian’, held it up proudly on the pitch by midfielder Giovani Lo Celso.
Now, the White House Fifa task force head, Andrew Giuliani, has sided with Argentina as he said: ‘We believe in our First Amendment rights here in the United States of America.’
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He added: ‘And in terms of the ability, the opportunity to be able to make statements, (Argentina) has the ability to do that in the United States of America.’
Fifa rules ban any political messaging at the World Cup but with the final set for Sunday, July 19, it’s unlikely any investigation would conclude before the match.
The Argentine Football Association was previously fined £20,000 by Fifa after the national team’s players posed behind a sign with the same message in 2014.
A FIFA spokesman said: ‘As is standard procedure, FIFA’s independent Disciplinary Committee is currently assessing the match reports and considering the relevant circumstances before deciding on potential further steps based on the FIFA Disciplinary Code.’
The UK and Argentina fought a war over the sovereignty of the Falkland Islands from April to June 1982, resulting in hundreds of deaths on both sides.
Previously, a spokesman for PM Keir Starmer said: ‘The World Cup might not be ours, but the Falkland Islands definitely are. Our position is unchanged. Self-determination rests with the islanders and our commitment to the Falklands will never waver.
‘More broadly, potential action is a matter for Fifa, but it’s been a fantastic World Cup and we’ve said throughout that politics should stay out of football.’
The banner was branded ‘entirely inappropriate’ by Business Secretary Peter Kyle when he appeared on BBC Breakfast.
‘Politics needs to be separate from football,’ he said. ‘In fact, the World Cup has one of its central tenets that politics is separate from football.
‘That is now a matter for Fifa. I expect Fifa to do its investigation thoroughly.’
Meanwhile, Argentina’s vice president Victoria Villarruel posted a video of what appeared to be soliders in the war with the caption ‘It wasn’t just another match’.
She also described the English team as ‘usurping pirates’ in a post before the game took place.
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