Football
7 hours ago
Argentine handed down biggest World Cup ban after final fiasco
By Nicholas Quinlan
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Several Argentinian players have received heavy punishments from FIFA after an all-in fight that broke out after the final.
After Spain’s 1-nil victory over Argentina in extra time, a brawl broke out between the two sides, involving several players.
Among those players, Argentine midfielder Leandro Paredes was handed down a ten-match suspension from playing for Argentina and $90,000 ($125,558 AUD) fine. This exceeds the biggest suspension handed down at a World Cup, having surpassed Luiz Suarez’s nine-match ban and $100,000 fine for biting Giorgio Chiellini.
Teammates Nahuel Molina and Thiago Almada were also handed down punishments by FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee, having been given a seven-match suspension & $90,000 USD fine and a one-match suspension and a $30,000 fine, respectively.
Team official Roberto Ayala was also handed a three-match suspension and a $30,000 fine for his involvement in the scuffle. Spanish players have also been handed down sanctions.
Midfielder Gavi has been given a one-match suspension and a $30,000 fine.
The runners-up were also handed down a $321,000 fine to their association from their semi-final clash against England for displaying a banner which read “Las Malvinas son Argentinas” which, when translated to English, says, “the Falkland Islands are Argentinian,” which relates back to the war between the two nations back in 1982, which saw the British claim the territory. This was viewed as a breach of FIFA’s Disciplinary Code by using a sporting event to commit a demonstration of non-sporting nature.
That fine total also includes punishment for racist, homophobic, and discriminatory chants and insults made by its supporters throughout the course of the tournament.
This will also have a flow-on effect for their next two international friendlies at home, which can be played at a limited capacity of 50% of seats in the stadium. The Argentinian Football Association (AFA) have confirmed in a statement that they have been notified of the punishments.
