Argentina's Falklands banner backed by White House's World Cup chief after semi-final row
Lionel Messi's team sparked fury by holding a fan-made sign reading "The Falklands are Argentinian" after their last-gasp 2-1 victory against England on Wednesday
Argentina's players have been backed by the White House after flying a controversial Falklands banner after beating England in the World Cup semi-final in Atlanta.
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Lionel Messi's team sparked fury by holding a fan-made sign reading "The Falklands are Argentinian" after their last-gasp 2-1 victory on Wednesday.
The scenes resulted in a diplomatic row, with Number 10 insisting that "The World Cup may not be ours, but the Falklands are".
Wading into the row, Donald Trump's World Cup chief Andrew Giuliani defended the Argentines, citing "free speech".
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He said: “We believe in our First Amendment rights…
“In terms of the ability, the opportunity to be able to make those statements, they have the ability to do that in the United States of America.”
Despite the backing of the White House, the Argentinian team are facing a nervous wait to see which sanction they may receive for the stunt.
FIFA bans political expression in stadiums - with Spanish players having been banned for a match in recent years for a similar incident in which they suggested that Gibraltar belongs to Spain.