Argentina president Javier Milei has declared that people are ‘jealous’ of his country because they are ‘good at almost everything’ – despite their shameful World Cup final defeat.
The libertarian leader, who claimed in April that the Falklands ‘will always be Argentine’, watched the final from home out of superstition, only to see them lose.
But Milei was left red-faced on Monday after he accidentally published a scheduled tweet celebrating an Argentina victory and announcing a national holiday which the public will now not get.
The generously sideburned politician said: ‘The problem with Argentina is that we are flashy, we don’t go unnoticed, people are jealous of us, and we are good at almost everything.
‘I’m sorry, but someone had to say it.’
Milei has been outspoken in the wake of Argentina’s 1-0 defeat by Spain and insisted that refereeing decisions went against them. The South Americans had two shots all game.
Argentina president Javier Milei has declared that people are ‘jealous’ of his country after their World Cup final defeat
Argentina’s defeat by Spain was marred by their own violence and disgraceful behaviour
That flies in the face of the consensus opinion throughout the tournament, which was that Argentina benefited from numerous favourable calls from officials.
He told LN+: ‘The match was extremely difficult for us on Sunday, and yet Argentina could have grabbed an equaliser in the final minutes, even though the run of play was not at all favourable to Argentina.’
He added that: ‘Argentina always took up stances and behaved in a measured manner throughout the tournament, even in the moments when the referee took incorrect positions towards the Argentina national team in some matches, as they responded in a very measured and organised way, and they were always distinguished fighting until the end.’
Measured and distinguished is one way of putting it for a side who are under investigation by FIFA for their conduct after the final whistle.
Midfielder Leandro Paredes grabbed Spain’s Eric Garcia by the neck and pushed over Gavi in ugly post-match scenes.
Meanwhile, Nicolas Otamendi, who has now retired from international football, got into a row with Spain captain Rodri.
Anyone who was relying on Milei for news of the final would have been misled on Monday morning when his scheduled tweet came out.
The embattled president wrote on X: ‘WORLD CELEBRATION: Given the concern about the celebrations for the achievement reached by the Argentine National Team, I inform the population that, depending on what the Players and the Technical Staff decide regarding the day to celebrate, it will be declared a national holiday.’
Argentina were unable to repeat their glory of 2022, when they beat France on penalties to win the World Cup, but they should be commended for reaching three finals in the last four editions.
That said, many supporters around the world and several of their opponents felt that the tournament was ‘rigged’ in Argentina’s favour by FIFA.
Milei’s popularity has plummeted this year amid corruption allegations, with his cabinet chief recently resigning.
He took up the presidency in 2023.
