World Cup 2026: Why Argentina sing about England and Falklands?

The Falkland Islands, an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean, have been a British overseas territory since 1833.

The island group is located 300 miles off the east coast of Argentina, which believes it should have sovereignty.

This came to a head in 1982 when Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands, but lost the war.

The Falklands War lasted 74 days, and claimed 907 lives: 649 Argentine military personnel, 255 British and three Falkland Islanders.

Remembering the soldiers who lost in that defeat 44 years ago, together The islands are still under British control. Important to Argentines – and included in several other songs.

Before a friendly against Zambia at La Bombonera Stadium in Buenos Aires in March, Falklands War veterans joined the players on the field to sing the national anthem.

One song in particular is regularly sung at football matches – and even at rock concerts – where Argentines jump up and down, chanting: “And now you see, and now you see, he who doesn’t jump is an Englishman!”

will be Increased security measures in place Due to historical tension.

“It’s part of Argentine culture,” Argentine journalist Nicolas Rotnitsky told BBC Sport.

“It’s like ‘we’re not them – we’re us’. So we have to prove we’re not one of them.”

Along with Brazil, England is considered Argentina’s biggest football rival, Rotnitsky said.

“It’s not about hate, not at all,” Rotnitsky said.

“It’s important, getting our identity around what happened to the Malvinas. It’s about who we are.”

Argentina midfielder Rodrigo de Paul said the songs were “about our heroes” and not about politics.

“We have to understand that this is a football match and the Malvinas issue needs to be discussed elsewhere,” De Paul said.

England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford said it was “a game of football” and predicted “football will speak for itself”.

Argentina’s War Veterans Federation insisted on 2 April that the game was “not an armed rematch or historical reparations”.

But it is an inevitable clash between politics and sports.

Argentina’s foreign minister, Pablo Quirno, said this week that the population of the Falkland Islands had been “artificially resettled by the occupying power”.

The UK government has hit back, insisting the Falkland Islanders are “British with the right to determine their own future”.

Even FIFA cannot ignore politics.

Premier League referee Anthony Taylor was a contender to officiate at the 2022 World Cup final but was ruled out when Argentina got there.