Three Argentina players banned over brawl after World Cup final defeat

Leandro Paredes of Argentina and Eric Garcia of Spain argue while Lionel Scaloni tries to separate them. Pic: Al Bello/Getty Images

Three Argentina players have been banned for their part in a brawl at the end of last month’s World Cup final against Spain, but the South American nation have only been fined for displaying a Falkland Islands banner after the semi-final win over England.

Midfielder Leandro Paredes has been hit hardest and given a 10-match ban and a 90,000 US Dollars fine by FIFA’s disciplinary committee, while defender Nahuel Molina was given a seven-match suspension and fined the same amount.

Thiago Almada was given a one-match ban and a 30,000 USD fine, while Argentina coach Roberto Ayala was banned for three matches and fined the same amount.

Spain’s Gavi has also been given a one-match ban and a 30,000 USD fine.

Argentina’s football association (the AFA) has also been fined 321,000 US dollars in relation to the displaying of a banner at the end of the World Cup semi-final which read ‘Las Malvinas son Argentinas’ which translates as ‘The Falkland Islands are Argentinian’.

The fine also covered breaches by Argentina supporters of FIFA’s anti-discrimination regulations at other World Cup matches. For the discrimination offences, the AFA has been ordered to play the country’s next home match at 50 per cent capacity, with a 50 per cent capacity restriction at a further match suspended. FIFA said 100,000 US dollars of the fine was also suspended.

The Falkland Islands are a UK overseas territory, with islanders voting overwhelmingly to remain so in 2013. In April 1982 Argentinian forces invaded the islands, but were forced to surrender by June of the same year.

The banner was condemned by UK politicians at the time it was displayed, with Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey calling for the players who held it up to be suspended. UEFA had banned two Spain players – Rodri and Alvaro Morata – after they sang about Spain’s claims to Gibraltar after their Euro 2024 triumph.

Business Secretary Peter Kyle also described the banner as “entirely inappropriate”.

On August 6, the AFA announced that the date of the semi-final win over England – July 15 – would be commemorated as ‘National Football Teams Day’ in the future.

FIFA’s decision to fine Argentina rather than take any stronger action is in contrast to the threat of sporting sanctions – starting with a yellow card – FIFA made if England captain Harry Kane wore a rainbow-coloured ‘OneLove’ armband at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, a country where homosexuality is criminalised.

The AFA said the portion of the 321,000 US dollar fine related to the display of the banner was 10,000 US dollars, with a further 20,000 US dollars for the inappropriate conduct of supporters.

The federation said its legal department would “request from FIFA the grounds for the rulings that are reviewable in order to file appeals before the Appeals Committee of the governing body of world football, leaving in the future the possibility of appealing to the CAS as a last resort” in relation to all the sanctions imposed.