After winning the Copa America, the Argentinians apparently took the wrong tone during the celebrations – and sparked a wave of indignation in France. The Albiceleste are accused of racism
“Given the seriousness of these shocking remarks, which are contrary to the values of sport and human rights, the President of the FFF has decided to approach his Argentinian counterpart and FIFA directly and file a complaint for offensive remarks of a racist and discriminatory nature,” reads a statement from the French Football Federation (FFF).
What happened? A video of the Argentinian world champions singing a song that goes beyond the boundaries of good taste is circulating on the internet. A diatribe was intoned that primarily focuses on the African roots of numerous French national team players and de facto denies that they are French. In addition, Kylian Mbappé was insulted by name and there are also trans-hostile lines.
The video was created during an Instagram Live by Chelsea midfield ace Enzo Fernandez. He had obviously tried to break off, but was ultimately too late
Now the outrage is great. The President of the French Football Association, Philippe Diallo, condemned “the unacceptable racist and discriminatory remarks against players of the French national team in the strongest terms”. France’s Sports Minister Amelie Oudea-Castera called on FIFA to take action. “Pathetic. Behavior that is all the more unacceptable because it is repeated,” she wrote on X and added: “FIFA: a reaction?”
On Sunday, Argentina had won the Copa America in Miami (1:0 against Colombia), two years earlier they had become world champions in Qatar against France (4:2 in the final)
Back then, Argentinian fans had sung the lines in question – now they have been adopted by the players. That doesn’t go down well with the professionals either. “Football in 2024. Blatant racism,” wrote Wesley Fofana, also French and Fernandez’s club colleague at Chelsea FC, for example.
