After the World Cup final, a brawl involving fist-fighting and other unruly behavior... Argentina faces 'severe FIFA sanctions'

*This content was translated by AI.

Following their defeat in the 2026 FIFA North American World Cup final, Argentine national team players and coaching staff who resorted to violence, including punching opposing players, have ultimately been pushed toward facing severe sanctions from FIFA.

The FIFA Disciplinary Committee announced on the 21st (Korean time) that it has appointed a dedicated disciplinary and ethics investigator to look into the mass altercation between both teams immediately after the North American World Cup final.

The incident occurred right after the tournament final between Spain and Argentina, held at New Jersey Stadium in New York, USA, the previous day. It happened just as Spain secured victory with a 1-0 scoreline thanks to Ferran Torres (Barcelona) scoring the winning goal in the first minute of extra time, confirming their championship title for the first time in 16 years.

The incident began when Nahuel Molina (Atletico Madrid), an Argentine defender, threw a punch at Rodri (Manchester City), captain of the Spanish national team and the tournament's 'Golden Ball' winner, as Rodri was rushing onto the field to celebrate the victory.

Molina responded aggressively to Rodri's protest, and when Eric Garcia (Barcelona) of Spain rushed over to calm the situation, Leandro Paredes (Boca Juniors) of Argentina charged in and struck Garcia in the neck. Gavi (Barcelona), who rushed over to intervene, was pushed down by Thiago Almada (Atletico Madrid). The stadium quickly descended into chaos as Paredes shoved Gavi's face, among other incidents.

The British outlet The Sun reported that "Argentina struggled throughout the 120th-minute match against Spain and expressed their frustration through violence immediately after the final whistle blew." It added that "Molina appeared to throw a punch at Rodri (Spain substitute), while Paredes threw multiple punches at Gavi's face and threw him to the ground. Argentina also suffered a complete defeat in terms of sportsmanship during the match, including Enzo Fernandez (Chelsea) being sent off."

As FIFA decided to thoroughly investigate the situation at the time, players involved in the brawl, including fist-fighting, could no longer avoid disciplinary action from FIFA. Available videos and photos show that Argentine national team players and coaching staff, including Paredes, were largely on the offensive with violence, making severe sanctions inevitable. According to FIFA's disciplinary regulations, violations of fair play and maintaining dignity can result in bans from all football activities. On this day, Argentina lost in a dismal performance where they failed to record a single shot during the full 90 minutes of regular time for the first time in World Cup final history, missing out on the championship.

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*This content was translated by AI.