Downing Street has hit back after Argentina players celebrated their World Cup semi-final victory over England by holding a banner said: “The Falkland Islands are Argentinian”.
Argentina boss Lionel Scaloni had said before the game he did not want the fixture to become about the conflict over the British overseas territory.
But after his side came from 1-0 down with five minutes left to win 2-1 to reach a second successive World Cup final, players held up a banner that read ‘Las Malvinas son Argentinas’ which translates to ‘The Falkland Islands are Argentinian’.
When asked about the Argentine footballers holding up the banner, Downing Street pointed to remarks from the prime minister’s spokesperson on Monday, who said: “The UK’s position is clear, the islanders have repeatedly expressed their wish to remain a British territory and their right to self-determination is paramount.
“The Falkland Islanders are British with the right to determine their own future.”
Political tensions linger between Argentina and Great Britain over the Falkland Islands, which boiled over into conflict in 1982.
Argentina has repeatedly claimed sovereignty over the Falkland Islands, which are about 8,000 miles from Britain and 300 miles from mainland Argentina.
Argentina vice-president Victoria Villarruel had described England as “invaders” and “usurping pirates” in the build-up to the fixture, and tweeted a victory message at full-time by saying, “it wasn’t just another match” alongside a video of what appeared to be Argentinian soldiers.
Later on Wednesday, night, she shared images of the players holding the banner, along with a message which translated to: “The Falklands are Argentine! They banned bringing them to the stadium and forgot that we carry them in our blood and our hearts.”
This is a breaking news story. Updates to follow…
