Published July 21, 2026
Critics accused Argentina of dirty tactics and poor sportsmanship in their 1-0 loss to Spain, cementing Argentina’s status as the villains of the FIFA World Cup, a reputation that grew throughout the tournament.
Allegations of racism against fans from the South American country, including Hollywood actor Samuel L. Jackson, were also rife.
Recommended stories
list of 4 itemsend of list
But Argentines insist they are just passionate and misunderstood.
“I think he deserves some credit for not being well-liked because he is arrogant and tends to look down on most people,” lawyer Leo Simone, 55, said from his home north of Buenos Aires.
“They’re confusing arrogance with pride,” said his wife, who declined to give her name.
Star player Lionel Messi is loved around the world, but critics claim they are FIFA’s darlings, and anti-Argentine sentiment has been fueled by decisions in the referee’s favor, including penalties and cards shown to opponents.
In the final, a series of fouls and scuffles on the pitch turned Argentina’s backs as Spain lifted the World Cup trophy.
The New York Times called it “an annoying, angry, and unpleasant performance.”
Former German player Thomas Hitzlsperger wrote in X that the Argentines were “disgusting sportsmen”, while British TV personality Piers Morgan said: “They basically went around punching as many Spaniards as they could.”
“We’ve always been criticized, we’re used to it. But we always give our best,” construction worker Maximiliano Heredia, 35, said near Ezeiza airport, where thousands of fans greeted the players returning to Buenos Aires on Monday night.
Many Argentines online wore the criticism like a badge of honor.
“There is something about Argentina’s irreverence that they cannot tolerate. Our rebelliousness irritates and enrages them… They call us cocky, cheaters, dirty, etc. And we love it and it fills us with pride,” journalist Pedro Rosenblatt wrote on his Instagram.
Sports journalist Ezequiel Fernández Moore told AFP news agency that some of the criticism was justified. “Sometimes we think that we are the center of the universe, that God and our own navels are Argentines.”
He said local football’s norms of provocation, mockery and boasting do not translate to a global audience.
“We cannot expect the world to understand us, the way we are, the way we feel, the way we express ourselves,” he said.
Still, he said it was “not right” that the team turned its back on Spain and accepted the cup.
Simone, the lawyer, rejected the idea that physical play makes Argentina a violent team.
“Argentina, like almost all South American football, is a hard-fighting team, but Spain also resorted to tactical fouls.”
“This is football. If you don’t want to get hit, play volleyball.”
For Evelio Rubio, a 47-year-old Venezuelan neurologist who has lived in Argentina for 10 years, it is impossible to understand “the soccer experience here” from the outside.
For Venezuelans accustomed to their national team not winning titles, it’s “spectacular” to feel that passion from within.
Argentine fans and some players have also faced accusations of racism, including chants sung by the team in the past that mocked France’s black players as not being truly French.
There is also a long history of club-level fans throwing bananas on the field and making monkey-like gestures at Brazilian fans and black players.
During this World Cup, FIFA condemned racism in a statement after an Argentina supporter told a black American influencer known as IShowSpeed to “cry in the zoo” during a live broadcast.
American actor Samuel L. Jackson caused a stir on his Instagram Story when he appealed to black people not to support Argentina, which he called “one of the most racist countries in the world.”
Ivan Schriaker, a sociologist at the National University of San Martín, said people should not see racism in relation to soccer, but apply it to Argentine society and history in general.
This racism exists and should not be denied, he said.
“But in many cases, these labels come from colonial powers that have not yet fully resolved their racism issues.”
