FIFA looks into fight after Spain beats Argentina in World Cup final

FIFA has started an investigation into a fight between Argentine and Spanish players right after the World Cup final in New Jersey. Spain won the match 1-0, taking the title from Argentina, who had been champions since 2022.

The football governing body announced the inquiry on Monday. They stated that their disciplinary panel has looked at official match reports about the chaotic events that happened at the end of an intense match that was decided in extra time.

“FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee has appointed a Disciplinary and Ethics Prosecutor to investigate potential breaches of the FDC with regard to the post-match incidents,” FIFA told Al Jazeera in a statement.

FIFA also mentioned that they would share their findings once the review is done.

Spain’s victory, marking their second world championship, was marred by the chaos, which seemed likely given the clear frustration from both teams and coaching staff during the game.

As soon as the final whistle blew, some players fell to the ground. Some were celebrating while others were devastated. Meanwhile, a group of players got into a physical fight.

Videos that have gone viral online show Spain’s Lamine Yamal kneeling and raising his hands in what seems like a sign of thanks. This happened while fights broke out behind him, with Argentine players throwing punches at their Spanish rivals.

Argentina’s Leandro Paredes grabbed Spain’s Eric Garcia by the neck. After Spanish substitute Gavi tried to intervene, Paredes pushed him down.

Argentina’s coach, Lionel Scaloni, who was still in charge of the reigning 2022 champions, rushed in to pull Paredes away from the two Spaniards. Yet, Paredes continued to push other Spanish players until a teammate held him back.

Not every moment was aggressive. Yamal and Argentine captain Lionel Messi embraced warmly after the match. But overall, tension remained high between the two teams.

Later, as staff set up the podium for the trophy presentation, Spain’s players applauded Argentina’s team while they collected their runner-up medals.

However, Argentina did not return the gesture. Their players turned away from Spain as the new champions received their gold medals and lifted the trophy.

There is no timeline yet for when FIFA’s investigation will be finished, nor any word on whether there will be disciplinary action.

This investigation comes after another FIFA probe started last week. It looked into Argentina’s players displaying a political banner after their World Cup semifinal win over England. This act broke stadium rules and caused backlash in the UK due to the sensitivities around the Falkland Islands’ sovereignty, a British territory near Argentina’s coast.

Defender Lisandro Martinez and substitute Giovani Lo Celso held up a sign that read “Las Malvinas son Argentinas” (“The Falklands are Argentinian”) while celebrating their comeback victory that Wednesday.

This action drew criticism in Britain, where officials urged FIFA to investigate. FIFA confirmed they had opened a review, calling it “standard procedure.”

“FIFA’s independent disciplinary committee is currently assessing the match reports and considering the relevant circumstances before deciding on potential further steps based on the FIFA disciplinary code,” a FIFA spokesperson told Al Jazeera on Thursday.

No new updates have been given on that investigation since.