essay on argentina football team

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A rgentina is one of the giants among national football teams and the population is known for its immense football passion; Jonathan Wilson writes in Angels with Dirty Faces : “No country so intellectualizes its soccer, so loves its theories and its myths”. When talking of Argentina in context of football it impossible to leapfrog Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi, two of the greatest football players of all time. But the history goes further back and in earlier periods other stars has redeemed Argentine football such as Manuel Seoane, Antonio Sastre, Adolfo Pedernera and Omar Sívori. The team is also known as the Albiceleste, from the colors of the shirt.

Main trophies

World Cup: 3 Campeonato Sudamericano / Copa América: 14

Player records

Most games played: Lionel Messi (172) Top goalscorer: Lionel Messi (98, in 2023 )

• World Cup performance
• Campeonato Sudamericano / Copa América performance

The rivalry with Uruguay

When the first edition of the Campeonato Sudamericano (the predecessor of the Copa América) was played in 1916, Argentina was the host. At this time, South American football was dominated by Argentina and Uruguay and it was the neighbor in the east that often got the upper hand. It would happen in the 1916 final and was repeated in the Summer Olympics 12 years later and in the first World Cup another 14 years later Argentina would win its first Campeonato Sudamericano title in 1921 and three more victories would follow in the same decade. It was obvious at the time that Argentina could compete with the best teams in Europe; during a tour on the continent in 1925, Argentina won 16 out of 19 games. Before the establishment of the World Cup, the Olympic Games yielded as the most prestigious international tournament. Argentina participated in the tournament for the first time in 1928. The team run through the tournament in superior style, winning by a combined score of 23-5 before facing the big rival Uruguay in the final. The game finished 1-1, which led to a rematch three days later, which was won by Uruguay 2 to 1. 

In the first World Cup, played in Uruguay, Argentina would be one of the 13 participating teams. They won their group ahead of Chile , France and Mexico and after destroying USA by 6-1 in the semi-finals they would once again meet Uruguay in an immortal final. This was probably the biggest game so far in Argentine football and over 10,000 Argentine supporters went to Montevideo to see the match at the Estadio Centenario. Uruguay would take the lead, but two goals from Carlos Peucelle and Guillermo Stábile would put Argentina ahead. Nevertheless, the outcome would once again be Argentine frustration.

A series of mediocre World Cups

Uruguay would lose its dominance in the game, but the role as the super power in football wouldn’t be taken by Argentina. Between the years 1934 and 1962 the national team would either produce rather weak performances or not participate at all in the World Cup. This was much to the fact that Argentina didn’t use professional players in the national team until 1962. The squad that participated in the second World Cup, held in Italy, was especially weak and it was eliminated from the tournament in the first game after a loss to Sweden.  After 1934, Argentina would withdraw from all World Cup tournaments (partly because of a dispute with FIFA, partly because of political protectionism) until 1958. The team of 1958 was South American champions, but unfortunately, it would be hashed by Italian purchasers who attracted players as Omar Sivori, Angelillo and Juan Maschio over to Europe. Above that, the River Plates’ Roberto Zárate was injured. Argentina had dominated South American football for a long time, but the team that represented the country in 1958 World Cup would return home from Sweden after a fiasco – they finished fourth and last in their group including a 1-6 humiliation against Czechoslovakia in the third match.

A dominant force in South American football

Yet, great performances in the Campeonato Sudamericano (South American Championships) continued. After losing another final to Uruguay in 1935, the Albiceleste would win the Campeonato Sudamericano after a playoff against Brazil . In the 1940s, Argentina won four of the six editions of the Campeonato Sudamericano (in 1949, AFA didn’t send a team), and they would continue to be one of the best performing sides on the continent the following decade. One of the best tournament performances by an Argentine national side came in the 1957 Campeonato Sudamericano. They went undefeated through the tournament until they lose in the last game – against the rest of the continent (i.e. Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador, Peru and Uruguay) they achieved a combined score of 26-6. 

Re-organization

After the 1958 meltdown in Sweden a new coaching staff and with Victorio Spinetto as head coach were installed, and almost an entirely new player squad was constructed. Once again, Argentina performed at top when they played in on home soil in Campeonato Sudamericano – they finished first, one point ahead of Brazil. Although blamed by some for adopting anti-fútbol , Victorio Spinetto, gave the team a new tactical direction. When Argentina played the next world cup, Spinneto, had however, already been replaced by Juan Carlos Lorenzo, also him associated with pragmatic and defensive play. Jonathan Wilson writes in Angels with Dirty Faces that “in the 1960s Argentinian soccer became tougher and more cynical, the outlook more defensive”, and here also referring to the national club football. Argentina did qualify to the 1962 World Cup in Chile. It would be a triumph for one South American side, but not Argentina. Brazil would win the tournament whereas Argentina failed to progress from the group with a very small margin to England . For years later, Argentina did qualify together with three other Comnebol members to participate in 1966 World Cup in England. The preparations had been disturbed by the military coup that happened just a month before the final tournament and by the fact that a new coach, Juan Carlos Lorenzo, suddenly had been appointed just weeks before the first match in England. The players didn’t get along with Lorenzo concerning the playing system which was further damaging. Also, the players were surprised by discovering that the ball to be used in the tournament was not the same as the model they had been used in the training. Argentina would reach the knockout stage, but once again England would be the reason for elimination. The Argentine team, playing at Wembley Stadium in front of over 90,000 didn’t manage to score and England would win the match, after a late goal by Geoff Hurst, and later the whole tournament.

A period without glory

Things got from worse to worse. Juan Carlos Lorenzo left his post shortly after the World Cup in England and a period followed with many coaches lasting only short periods. The results on the field were weak and for the first time Argentina did not qualify for a World Cup. Adolfo Pedernera, one of the best Argentine players through history, did surely not last long at the job as head coach after that low point. Juan José Pizzuti, Omar Sívori and Vladislao Cap would follow as engaged in the same position. Argentina qualified for the 1974 World Cup in Germany. After some half-convincing games, they would advance to the second round in the tournament together with Poland from Group 4. By this edition of the World Cup, the format had changed and a second group phase preceded the knockout stage. Argentina didn’t succeed to win any game in their group with the Netherlands, Brazil and East Germany . The Campeonato Sudamericano had come to a halt after 1967, but was renewed in 1975 and rebranded to Copa América. The first edition of Copa América didn’t become a new success to Argentina that had been drawn in the same group as Brazil. Both Brazil and Argentina won comfortable against Venezuela (in one of the matches Argentina won 11-0, which is their second biggest win ever – the biggest was 12-0 against Ecuador in 1942), but Brazil would win 2-1 and 1-0 in the matches versus Argentina. In the following year the president Isabel Perón was removed from the power and general Jorge Rafael Videla took over as a result of a military coup. The political situation in Argentine had been unstable even before the coup in 1976 – in 1930 came the first military coup and many governments up to 1976 had been established with the military involved in one way or another. But the 1976 coup have remained the most notorious in Argentine history and it was the beginning of a dark period in the country. Approximately 30,000 people that didn’t support the regime was “disappeared” during this period. Bad timing had ensured that Argentine stood as host for the 1978 World Cup . The construction and restoration of stadiums was far behind schedule, but the process did by time accelerate and was ready when the tournament was about to start. That didn’t stop the World Cup in Argentina from being a most controversial one and the players of the home national squad faced a moral dilemma. Nevertheless, it would turn out to be the greatest success so far for the Argentine football national team.

The Menotti-era

Vladislao Cap had lost his job as head coach for the national team after the 1974 World Cup and Luis Menotti took over. Menotti would remain at the post for eight years and became one of the most remembered AFA coaches. His philosophy of football would set marks on Argentinian football for a long time and he would also be the first to lead the team to a world champion title. One of the first things Menotti did was to change the preparation routines for a bigger tournament. He made the national team a bigger priority and expanded the period of preparations. More players were tried before a squad were decided for a World Cup than had been the case before. One of the candidates for the Argentina XI at that time was the 17-years old Diego Maradona, who has made his debut in 1977. In the end, Maradona was left outside the 1978 World Cup squad, but the young prodigy would instead be the star in the Argentina U20 that won the 1979 FIFA World Youth Championship. The squad Menotti had put together for the 1978 World Cup tournament consisted exclusively of players based in South America except the Valencia player Mario Kempes. The much-awaited tournament took off and it looked great for Argentina after two victories against Hungary and France. Italy waited in the last group match and now the drawback came, AFA were defeated with 1-0. Nevertheless, Argentina advanced to the second round and were placed in the same group as Brazil, Peru and Poland. The key match against Brazil was a draw and that made it a race for the best goal difference. Brazil had a 5+ goal difference after three played games and Argentina had only 2+ before their last match against Peru. They needed to win by at least three goals. The match on the 21 June at Estadio Gigante de Arroyito has become one of the controversial matches in the history of World Cup. When the referee blew the final whistle, Argentine had won 6-0 and would play the final whereas Brazil would be playing for the third place. Some has speculated that the match against Peru was fixed, but no proof of any kind has ever been accounted for. In the end, white confetti would rain over the Estadio Monumental field in Buenos Aires when Argentina led by Mario Kempes overcome the Netherlands in a dramatic final.

The Maradona-era

The 1982 World Cup coincided with the Falklands War . The Argentine press did their best to imply that Argentine was the stronger part; the players of the Argentina got therefore chocking news after their arrival to Europe and reading Spanish newspaper commentating the war from an objective angle – Argentine was clearly losing in the conflict. Directly from the first match it stood clear that the 1982 version of the Argentina team couldn’t match the champion standard of 1978, although Maradona was in the squad. They lost their first match against Belgium but rebounded with victories in the two following group matches. In the second round Argentina ended up together with Italy and Brazil and did lose both their games. Italy that defeated the Albiceleste with 2-1 would go on and win the trophy. Shortly after the 1982 World Cup, Menotti resigned and Carlos Bilardo who had been successful with Estudiantes was chosen as the new national team coach. Carlos Bilardo may have been remembered as a truly successful coach, taking Argentina to two world cup finals. But this was an era in which the average result seen over all competition matches was the worst ever for the team. In the 1980s, Argentina came as best on the third place in the Copa América. Best remembered is of course the golden 1996 World Cup event in Mexico. The victory has often been referred to one man, but things are, of course, little more multifaceted in football. On the tactical side, Argentina had an ace up the sleeve – a 3-5-2 formation that was first tested by Bilardo in 1984. Many stars were anticipated to give outstanding performance in Mexico that summer, such as Enzo Francescoli, Michel Platini , Karl-Heinz Rummenigge and Hugo Sánchez . But one player would over-shadow the rest, Diego Maradona who did 5 goals and 5 assists (Argentina did 14 goals in the tournament). An important aspect concerning Maradona’s superior role was that the referees didn’t allow the same rough treatment that had hindered and frustrated the football genius in 1982. Also, the team had been built around him, which gave him a natural leading role. Argentina had no problems to progress from their group after two victories and one draw. Maradona had performed on an impressive level, but he would take his game even higher in the following matches against Uruguay, England and Belgium. In the final, his contribution was not that evident; West Germany did a great job to neutralize his impact, but they couldn’t stop him from deliver the perfect pass to Burruchaga that set him free against the goalkeeper Harald Schumacher to score the deciding 3-2 goal.

The results that followed after 1986 was, however, bleak for the world champion team. In 1987, as the hosts for Copa América, AFA was eliminated in the semi-finals after 0-1 against Uruguay and when lost the third-place match against Colombia. Claudio Caniggia was in the 1987 Copa América team and he would replace Valdano as the forward partner to Maradona in the following world cup. The 1990 World Cup that took place in Italy would almost be another Argentine success. Apart from the result, however, the performance from the team couldn’t match that in the previous tournament (the performance from their biggest star, Maradona, was impacted by a toe injury). Argentina had to struggle all the way, after a chocking loss against Cameron in the opening game. In the same game, the goalkeeper Nery Pumpido broke his leg and was replaced by Sergio Goycochea. Sergio Goycochea who was an expert on penalty savings would become a key figure since Argentina was involved in two penalty shootouts. After defeating Brazil in the Round 16, in which Maradona made his most memorable piece, by driving the ball from the middle of the field and when surrendered by Brazilian players set up Caniggia to score, Argentina didn’t win anymore matches during the ordinary match time. After 0-0 and 1-1 they eliminated Yugoslavia and Italy after penalty shootouts.  Albeit only been number three in the group, being pressed by Brazil in the Round of 16 and winning only after penalty-shootouts, Argentina was in another World Cup final. But the odds were not the best. Besides from not performing on a champion level, Cannigia had received his second yellow card in the semi-final and wasn’t allowed to play in the final. The spectators of the final would see the Argentine players delivering anti-football. Symptomatically, a penalty in the last ten minutes would settle the outcome in favor the West Germany. It would take 24 years until Argentina made it to the final in another World Cup and that game would also take end bad after one German goal. During the following years, Maradona’s life was busy, affected by affairs outside the football field and it was a surprise to many that he finally ended in up in the 1994 World Cup squad (Maradona had rejoined the team for the Playoff match against Australia). But sadly, the World Cup story would soon end abruptly. Although a fine performance on the field, Maradona would not remain in the tournament after testing positive for ephedrine. Maradona would be replaced by Ariel Ortega, which was an exciting player whose style resemblance the former number 10. Argentina was nevertheless eliminated by a terrific playing Romania in the Round of 16.

New generations

New generations of players would take on and among the most prominent would be names such as Gabriel Batistuta, Diego Simeone, Javier Zanetti and Juan Sebastián Verón. Daniel Passarella had taken over as coach and introduced a strict discipline: long hair, earrings, and even homosexuality(!) was banned. Batistuta was separated from the team during a long period until he finally made a haircut; Fernando Redondo that refused a concession remained outside the team. In the World Cup that followed, Argentina would eliminate England after a thriller, but lose a tight semi-final against the Netherlands. In 2002 Argentina – now with Marcelo Bielsa as coach, once again faced England, this time in the group and went down 1-2. That meant they had to win against Sweden in the last match (or England had to lose to Nigeria), but despite a huge playing advantage the match ended 1-1. Argentina was out already in the first round, it hadn’t happened since 1962. The Argentine side that arrived to the following World Cup was stuffed with star players such as Javier Mascherano, Esteban Cambiasso and Juan Román Riquelme . As one of the favorites they become even more bestowed after a 6-0 demolition of Serbia and Montenegro, which also included a display of magnificent football. In the same match Lionel Messi made his World Cup debut and contributed with one assist and one goal. The match against Mexico in the round of 16 was more even than expected, but in the end Maxi Rodríguez would make it 2-1 on extra time with a beautiful long-range shot.  Sadly, for the fans of Argentina, the national team were to be eliminated after a penalty shootout by the host team Germany in the quarter-finals. The coach José Pékerman would be criticized for not letting Messi play a single minute in the last game. Alfio Basile took over the job. Although he did only last two years until it was time for yet another chapter of Diego Maradona in Argentine football. On October 2008 he was appointed as the new coach and would stay during the following World Cup tournament qualification and finals. The hopes for a third Argentine World Cup glory was when set with Maradona as coach and his inheritor on the pitch. Messi would however not be the savior that so many hoped for. Once again, Argentina would be overcome in a World Cup by Germany, this time in a humiliated fashion. Germany beat Argentina with 4-0 in Cape Town and for the fans of the Albiceleste it lay four years of waiting in front of them. In 2014, on South American soil, it was once again a World Cup that was anticipated by many to be “Messi’s tournament”. And at least, it would – almost – be Argentine’s. Brazil, perhaps the biggest favorite after all, were completely crushed in the semi-final. Argentina who had reach the final was not happy by the name of the opponents. According to the statistics Argentina hadn’t beat Germany (or West Germany) in a World Cup since 1986. Argentina played defensive in the final, perhaps not strange given the performance Germany had proven mighty of against Brazil. Close to the end of the extra time, Mario Götze would destroy the Argentine dreams.

As the biggest star in the game at the time, Messi had enormous expectations to live up to in the 2018 World Cup. Already in the second game against Croatia , it stood clear that Argentina and Messi probably would deliver that many had expected. Argentina was beaten with three goals to none. Still, under hard pressure, Argentina had managed to take the second place in the group. But they were nevertheless eliminated by France – the soon-to-be champions – in a spectacular match. But in 2022, Argentina finally did it again. After a weak start in the with a 1-2 loss against Saudi Arabia, the Argentinians led by Messi reached all the way to beating France in a dramatic final.

FIFA World Cup results

Argentina has participated 18 times in the World Cup (FIFA World Cup qualification not included).

* Host nation

Campeonato Sudamericano / Copa América

South American Championships were known until 1975 as the Campeonato Sudamericano before it was renamed as Copa América. Argentina has participated 43 times in the tournament.

* In 1959, two South American Championship were hold, in Argentina and in Ecuador.

By Oscar Anderson

External links

› Official website

References: Jonathan Wilson, Angels with Dirty Faces (2016) Jonathan Wilson, Inverting the Pyramid: The History of Soccer Tactics (2013) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argentina_national_football_team Image sources: 1. El Gráfico 2. Unknown 3. El Gráfico 4. FIFA – World Cup Official Film 1986 5. Agencia de Noticias ANDES 6. Hossein Zohrevand

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Argentina Just Won the World Cup, and Lionel Messi Is the Perfect Man for This Moment

By Brenda Elsey

Dr. Elsey is a professor of history at Hofstra University and a co-author, most recently, of “Futbolera: A History of Women and Sports in Latin America.”

News update: Argentina beat France during a penalty shootout in the World Cup final on Sunday, delivering the first World Cup trophy for its star, Lionel Messi.

Argentina’s passionate football fans create the players they want to see. They adore, they chide, they analyze. And few have been on the receiving end of Argentine scrutiny like Lionel Messi, the improbably slight forward who has dominated the sport for 15 years.

Despite his global success, Argentines have doubted his patriotism and suggested he cared more about Spain, where he played for F.C. Barcelona until 2021, than his home country. Journalists have insulted him, in explicitly gendered language, describing him as “pecho frío,” or “cold chested.” After he led a technically inferior team to the 2014 World Cup final, his own grandfather criticized him on television as “somewhat lazy.”

This year’s World Cup is likely to be the last for Messi, who is 35. He has performed admirably, with three goals so far, helping Argentina secure its spot in the quarterfinals, where it will face the Netherlands on Friday. But Argentine fans have seemed to care as much about their captain’s journey as they have about winning football’s ultimate prize.

That is a striking difference from when he announced his (short-lived) retirement in 2016 because of his failure to deliver an international trophy. The team’s recent winning streak — interrupted only by a shocking loss to Saudi Arabia in the group stage — has gone a long way to ease tensions, but the pendulum has swung far beyond that. Messi, at least publicly, remains the same. Argentina, however, is a different country from the one he left in 2001 as a 13-year-old phenom. The feminist movement and its challenge to the patriarchs of football set off much of that transformation.

Messi has never fit the archetype of the “pibe,” an affectionate term for an Argentine football hero. The “pibe” was born in the poor neighborhoods of early 20th-century Buenos Aires. He outsmarted the elite with his trickery and wooed women with his charm. No one brought the figure to life more than Diego Maradona, who led Argentina to victory in the 1986 World Cup. Uncontrollable, Maradona symbolized rebellion against a militarized society. The Argentine public forgave, and often celebrated, his sexism, drug abuse and temper, which many saw as part of his “genius.”

In stark contrast, Messi, nicknamed “the flea,” is a subdued superstar. On the pitch, he pouts, he scowls and he even vomits . He was born in the provincial city of Rosario, where his father worked in a steel factory and his mother as a domestic servant. After he was diagnosed with growth hormone deficiency at 11 years old, Messi’s family worried his football dreams might be over. When F.C. Barcelona offered to pay for expensive medical treatments, he signed a contract on a napkin and moved with his father to Spain. On the rare occasions when Messi discusses his childhood, he mentions the pain of separation from his mother and siblings.

Female players and their feminist allies have vocally criticized the “pibe” model and the “win at any cost” mentality perpetuated by football. In the process, they have — in the years that coincided with the peak of Messi’s career — changed the country’s football culture.

Women began playing in Argentina more than 100 years ago, but football’s gatekeepers viciously shut them out . On the rare occasion that the national federation organized matches, it failed to pay the women. The disparity in support for the two national teams was among the largest in global sports.

In 2017, the national women’s team declared that it would go on strike. The federation’s corruption enabled sexual harassment and the diversion of funds earmarked for women’s development. It was dangerous for players who spoke out and many, including the former captain Estefanía Banini, suffered retribution .

Female players’ actions dovetailed with a blossoming of the feminist movement known as #NiUnaMenos, or “Not One Less.” Founded as a collective in Argentina that spread throughout Latin America, #NiUnaMenos organized general strikes and demonstrations to protest gender violence. #NiUnaMenos defined gender equity in broad terms, calling for reproductive rights, transgender rights and racial and class justice. The legalization of abortion in 2021 — nothing short of miraculous in a Catholic country shaped by a military regime that promoted a conservative gender ideology — was largely the result of this activism.

Fans also began to respond faster and more forcefully to incidents of gender discrimination. In the late 2010s, Argentine feminists formed gender commissions within football clubs, rewrote clubs’ antiquated bylaws, questioned discriminatory chants, and created safer spaces in the stands and clubhouses for women and L.G.B.T.Q.-identifying fans.

As waves of purple scarves, the emblem of #NiUnaMenos, flooded the streets of Argentine cities, Lionel Messi continued to thrive at F.C. Barcelona. He married a childhood friend and became a doting father of three. Diverging once again from the boyish and untamed “pibe,” Messi seems to genuinely delight in caring for his children. And he continued to astound defenders and electrify audiences. He won the Ballon d’Or, the award for the world’s best player, a record seven times; he played on a team that won the Champions’ League; he became the highest all-time scorer in Argentine history; and finally, he led Argentina to victory over Brazil in the 2021 Copa América.

Through it all, Lionel Messi has defied the machismo in Argentine football in his own gentle way. Football stadiums are part of a sexist ecosystem where displays of misogyny and homophobia are commonplace; organized fans called “barras bravas” have created terrifying conditions during matches. Messi has rejected this violence, collaborating with his hometown, Rosario, in its campaign against violence in the stadiums. The campaign’s public service video features brutal images of fans attacking one another while Messi cries.

Argentina’s squad and its coach, Lionel Scaloni, are as important in redefining masculinity in football as Messi is. Although most members of the squad play for European clubs, they were raised in Argentine youth academies, which export hundreds of players a year to ply their trade in leagues from Indonesia to the United States. In 2018, boys in these academies came forward to report sexual abuse they suffered there. Their experiences helped to reverse the stigma associated with sexual violence.

It would be hyperbolic to claim a symbiotic relationship between Messi and feminists in his home country. And, of course, discriminatory behavior continues to plague football in Argentina. In the qualifiers for this World Cup, Argentina received fines and punishments related to racist gestures and homophobic chants among fans. But it’s undeniable that there has been a push from grass-roots activists to reconsider what values really matter in Argentina’s national pastime. They have punctured crusty models of heroism, laying the groundwork for an iconography that seems much more suited to Messi.

One jingle called “You Deserve This Cup” features fans shouting the line, “I don’t want anything if it’s not with Leo.” Whether or not Messi is able to lead his team to victory against the Netherlands and into the semifinals and beyond, he can finally enjoy the affection he has always sought from his homeland.

Brenda Elsey ( @politicultura ) is a professor of history at Hofstra University and an author, with Joshua Nadel, most recently, of “Futbolera: A History of Women’s Sports in Latin America.”

The Times is committed to publishing a diversity of letters to the editor. We’d like to hear what you think about this or any of our articles. Here are some tips . And here’s our email: [email protected] .

Follow The New York Times Opinion section on Facebook , Twitter (@NYTopinion) and Instagram .

How Argentina won the World Cup: Messi’s voice, lucky Aguero and lots of beef

Night had long since fallen in Doha when Argentina ’s team bus rolled out of the Lusail Stadium for the five-mile trip back to their headquarters at Qatar University.

The mood on board was funereal.

Saudi Arabia had just pulled off one of the greatest shocks in the history of the World Cup , beating Argentina 2-1 in their opening group game and ending their opponents’ 36-match unbeaten run in the process. A team who had arrived in Qatar as among the favourites to win what would be their third world title were wounded and looked vulnerable.

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Lionel Messi had offered a few words to the media in the stadium’s mixed zone but had said little in the dressing room. As the coach began its journey, however, he decided now was the time to speak.

According to Clarin, the Argentine newspaper, Messi stood up and told the squad that this defeat — far from spelling the end of their hopes — represented the chance to show “what this group is made of, to get stronger than ever, and look ahead”.

As Argentina’s jubilant players and coach Lionel Scaloni’s staff cavorted on Sunday night on the same Lusail Stadium pitch they had left in abject despair 26 days earlier, their place in history secure after sealing a first World Cup victory since 1986, those words Messi uttered may have been resounding in their ears.

The romantics may like to think that this tournament has adhered to some kind of celestial script, a joyous end to what had been billed as Messi’s last dance on the global stage, but the reality is rather different.

Instead, it was a triumph that stemmed from precise planning, indomitable team spirit, the mastery of a succession of crucial moments — and, yes, the harnessing of a 35-year-old Messi in his golden final years.

It is one of the curiosities of Messi’s gilded career that his dressing-room presence with Argentina was not quite in keeping with his fame. While his influence was always significant, for most of Messi’s career with the national team, midfielder Javier Mascherano was the player considered the squad’s spiritual leader.

In recent years, however, Messi has found his voice — literally.

Footage of his stirring dressing-room speech before the 2021 Copa America final, held in Brazil’s totemic Maracana Stadium, went viral after Argentina’s 1-0 victory over their hosts and arch-rivals, and showed a new side to a footballer who had always been deemed as having simply led by his talismanic presence on the field.

There were changes in public, too. Whereas previously Messi’s utterances to the media were often delivered in idioms and slang from Spain, where he has spent most of his life after moving there at age 13, he now favours Argentine phraseology. For a nation that had initially struggled to warm to a player who had chosen to base himself in Barcelona for the past two decades, it was a significant shift.

So, too, has been Messi’s readiness to put himself front and centre of Argentina’s media activity in Qatar.

Previously, he had the reputation — perhaps a slightly unfair one — of going missing after high-profile defeats or setbacks, preferring to let other senior players do the talking.

After the defeat to Saudi Arabia, however, Messi — the captain — was the one fronting up, urging fans and press alike to keep faith in the players while acknowledging that they felt “dead” following the game.

Within the squad, too, Messi has adjusted to change.

In the past, his most trusted lieutenants were stationed on ‘la mesa chica’ (‘the small table’), where he and his inner circle would eat their meals on international duty. Mascherano, Lucas Biglia, Angel Di Maria , Gonzalo Higuain and Sergio Aguero were all regular dining companions, and it was strictly by invitation only. Mauro Icardi’s failure to settle in the Argentina set-up reportedly stemmed from him occupying an empty seat at la mesa chica, apparently because he felt his elevated reputation in Europe permitted him that same status with the national team. It is said that Messi and his friends were unimpressed.

Now, Messi has had no option but to integrate with others. Mascherano, Biglia, Higuain and Aguero are all retired, either from international football or from playing altogether; of that original circle, Di Maria is the only other one who was still playing at Qatar 2022. Instead, Messi has bonded with the likes of Rodrigo De Paul (the man who has become known, affectionately, as his bodyguard on and off the pitch ), Nicolas Otamendi and Papu Gomez .

Leandro Paredes has become a close ally, and not just from them spending last season together as team-mates at Paris Saint-Germain. Spanish newspaper El Pais has reported that when De Paul was a new addition to the national squad in 2019, he and Paredes knocked on Messi’s door and invited him to play cards with them. They still do that now.

Messi still has a special status in the squad. Whereas he stayed in Room 201 at the Qatar University campus on his own (the Pope took Suite 201 in the Vatican following his election in 2013 — a neat coincidence if nothing else), his team-mates shared.

De Paul stayed with Otamendi, a senior figure who is considered something of a minder for the younger players, while Paredes — who runs the squad’s WhatsApp group — bunked with Di Maria. The pair have plenty in common, having both been part of the rumoured South American ‘clique’ in the PSG dressing room which was broken up in the summer.

But younger players such as Lisandro Martinez , Enzo Fernandez , Cristian Romero, Julian Alvarez and Nahuel Molina also bought into the team spirit: they are well known to each other, having grown up playing in Argentina’s youth ranks, and there was never any question of them failing to show sufficient respect for the more senior pros.

Fernandez, for one, will have remembered the letter he wrote to Messi as a 15-year-old, proclaiming his devotion to the No 10 — who had just announced a short-lived retirement from international football — and bemoaning how badly treated he had been by their home country.

Julián Álvarez really went from asking Messi for a picture to scoring goals alongside him in the World Cup 🤯 (📷: @FabrizioRomano ) pic.twitter.com/lQOlVxfzjt — Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) December 13, 2022

The groups of players mixed well at Qatar University, a base that was in contrast to many of Argentina’s World Cup rivals, most of whom opted to stay in one of the state’s many opulent hotels and spa resorts. The college campus was hardly spartan but it was relatively frills-free, and Argentina felt the business-like surroundings would help underline that their squad was there to win, rather than for a holiday.

There were some creature comforts imported from home, most notably 2,600kg (5,700lb) of beef, plus four custom-made grills and a stoker, all of which helped provide the asado – the outdoor barbeque which is an Argentine speciality, and which allowed players to bond while the meat was cooked by team chef Diego Iacovone in one of the campus courtyards.

Como a la información hay que manejarla con cuidado, me tomé unas horas para investigar un tema de vital importancia de cara a la Copa del Mundo: Los asados de la Selección Argentina en la Universidad de Qatar. pic.twitter.com/qYLB2ERlyf — Seba Varela del Río (@sebavdr) November 18, 2022

“My favourite food is the asado, but it’s more than that,” said manager Scaloni. “It creates an atmosphere of union and collective chemistry. It’s part of our culture, the Argentine idiosyncrasy. It’s during that time that we get to talk, to laugh, relax and connect. It’s not necessarily about the meat, although we love it, it’s to be part of a group and the connection that it generates.”

There was downtime for players with their families, too: squad members were given two days off after the last-16 victory over Australia , with relatives allowed to enter the training camp. More time off was granted following the semi-final defeat of Croatia , although Messi was one of the players who opted to stay on-site and prepare for the final.

This was a tournament where he wanted to leave nothing to chance.

Not that Messi was entirely without allies from the old days.

One of the figures who featured most prominently in Argentina’s progress to the final was not even a member of the official party in Qatar — Aguero, who was forced to retire last December, at the age of 33, due to a newly-discovered heart condition.

Aguero, who scored 41 goals in 101 senior games for Argentina, was officially in Qatar to work for ESPN Argentina and to produce his own Twitch videos, featuring interviews with players.

These have generally been well received, although his role did provoke one awkward moment when, after that loss to Saudi Arabia, Aguero outlined why Lautaro Martinez had been the wrong choice to lead the forward line, and that Alvarez should have played.

It was interpreted as an attack on Martinez — who was quizzed about Aguero’s comments in the days afterwards — and created some tension behind the scenes, although the fact that Alvarez was promoted to the starting line-up for the third group game against Poland suggested that the coaching staff had come to the same view.

By the end of the tournament, however, Aguero had become the squad’s lucky mascot, taking part in training — he scored a superb goal in the session that took place three days before the final — and resuming his close alliance with Messi.

The 35-year-old is godfather to Aguero’s son, Benjamin, 13, and takes his duties seriously, even giving him the shorts he had worn in the semi-final victory over Croatia.

Aguero and Messi had roomed together in their time with the national squad and in the build-up to Sunday’s final, the former Manchester City striker moved back in with his old friend to offer support ahead of the biggest game of his life.

Then, in the final itself, Aguero was once again front and centre of Argentina’s celebrations: at the final whistle, he joined the players on the pitch — wearing a No 19 shirt, a number he’d worn playing for his country and when briefly team-mates with Messi early last season at Barcelona , and carrying an enormous drum — before taking his turn to hold the trophy aloft and carrying his friend triumphantly around the field on his shoulders.

By the time the party had retreated to the dressing room, Aguero was still helping to conduct the celebrations, including delivering some crude barbs at, for reasons that remain unclear, France substitute Eduardo Camavinga .

Argentina’s willingness to allow Aguero such an unusually prominent role behind the scenes is testament to his standing within the squad, but also reveals something about the character of the head coach who was happy to let it happen, while also ensuring that this band of strong, emotional personalities could forge a cohesive whole.

Lionel Scaloni was never supposed to coach Argentina.

After the dismissal of Jorge Sampaoli following their 4-3 World Cup round-of-16 defeat to title-bound France in 2018, most commentators were urging the appointment of one of Argentina’s garlanded club-level coaches, such as Mauricio Pochettino or Diego Simeone.

Scaloni, who has never held a club coaching job, was part of Sampaoli’s staff and got handed the role on an interim basis but was not considered a serious option to fill it permanently. Or at least, he was not until the parlous state of the Argentine Football Association’s finances became painfully clear. The ruinous regime of FA president Julio Grondona had left them unable to afford a higher-profile candidate and so Scaloni was given his chance.

Scaloni was aware of the underwhelming reaction to his appointment — Diego Maradona had accused him of being unable to direct traffic, let alone manage the national team — and understood the need to establish a strong support team around him. Most crucially, he knew how important it was to have staff who would earn the confidence of Messi.

His first hire, Pablo Aimar — one of Messi’s childhood idols, and a team-mate at the 2006 World Cup — was pivotal to that.

Aimar’s nickname may be ‘The Clown’ but that belies his influence: he is seen as the emotional heartbeat of this Argentina squad (he was pictured crying on the bench after Messi scored the crucial opening goal against Mexico in the second group game) and has the players’ unwavering respect.

Scaloni’s other appointments have all proved shrewd. Walter Samuel, a former centre-back and a strong, silent presence within the camp, is charged with working with the defence, often calling one-on-one meetings or small group chats to convey his instructions. Roberto Ayala, who was sporting director at Racing Club in Argentina and then briefly Valencia , provides more general oversight.

Scaloni, meanwhile, sets the culture which above all else was founded on pragmatism.

Whereas most Argentine coaches are considered disciples of one of two schools — Bilardismo (the win-at-all-costs mentality of Carlos Bilardo, the 1986 World Cup-winning coach) and Menottismo (named after Cesar Luis Menotti, whose free-flowing philosophy delivered the trophy in 1978) — Scaloni occupies a middle ground. He adapts his tactics to opponents, regularly switching systems and personnel between and during matches.

“The World Cup is won by the intelligent teams, the cautious teams, that know when to attack and when to defend,” Scaloni said before the tournament in Qatar began. “Rarely does a team win by overwhelming. Intelligence forms part of football and we will have to adapt ourselves to know what works for us.”

Argentina are the most tactically flexible World Cup winners we have ever seen

Scaloni’s refusal to use a settled system has not been met with unanimous approval in Argentina. Even within the coaching staff, The Athletic has been told, there were concerns that the team was not as solid as the one which won the Copa America 16 months earlier, albeit that can largely be attributed to injuries.

The coach has also been content to let Messi be the on-field manager, bending matches to his will.

In that vital group game against Mexico, with Argentina facing elimination, Messi — frustrated by his lack of impact — told Di Maria he needed to get the ball to him in the middle because he sensed their opponents had a soft centre. Sure enough, in the 64th minute, Di Maria delivered the ball in precisely that area and, with no defenders within two metres of him, Messi was able to take a touch and fire in the opening goal.

“He’s like a sniper, or a hunter, he’s looking around all the time,” said the Argentine journalist Martin Mazur, when appraising Messi’s ability to analyse matches as they happen around him. “Now when he’s walking , he’s hunting all the time. It’s like a nature documentary and working out what he’s going to do next.”

Scaloni did, however, intervene when necessary. After the Saudi defeat, when the squad had returned to their training base, he was reported to have called a meeting of his players and staff. It was not an angry dressing-down — more an attempt to lift spirits, especially among those who had no experience in this type of competition.

Whatever disappointment there was in the squad is said to have quickly given way to more positive messages delivered by the likes of Di Maria, Gomez, De Paul and Emiliano Martinez .

The message was clear: do not dwell on this disappointment.

Scaloni’s plan was wise because Argentina’s entire campaign was fuelled by emotion, and not just in relation to giving Messi the trophy his career deserves.

This World Cup also provided proof, if any were needed, that there are few more formidable forces in sport than an Argentina team with a grievance, and in Qatar they found them everywhere.

In the early stages of the tournament, there were grumbles from the travelling media corps that access had been relatively restricted, particularly given it contrasted with Brazil ’s open approach.

Whereas their great rivals were happy to put up a variety of coaches and players to discuss tactics and preparations in detail, Argentina were noticeably more prickly. One feisty exchange typified the mood, Scaloni taking umbrage at an inquiry relating to De Paul leaving a training session early. The coach said he would answer the journalist’s question, but only if he revealed his source.

This siege mentality extended to the pitch, and was best encapsulated by Martinez.

The goalkeeper — nicknamed ‘Dibu’ because in his younger days he looked like a character in a TV cartoon of that name — is one of the squad’s most popular and respected figures (Messi credited him with winning Argentina the Copa America last year) but is well known for his combustible approach. When Paredes was asked in a pre-tournament interview to remove from the squad’s WhatsApp group the player with the “hottest temper”, it was Martinez he selected.

The Aston Villa goalkeeper’s antics became increasingly extreme as the World Cup progressed.

His defining moment was undeniably after Sunday’s final, when he celebrated being presented with the Golden Glove award as the tournament’s best goalkeeper by placing the trophy on his groin and thrusting out his hips — apparently a reference to the size of his genitals — but that was far from a one-off.

After the bad-tempered quarter-final victory over the Netherlands , which featured a World Cup-record 18 yellow cards and was ultimately decided by Martinez’s brilliant performance in the penalty shootout, the goalkeeper revealed he had taken a screenshot on his phone of comments by Louis van Gaal in the build-up, when the opposition manager claimed that his side’s expertise from the spot would prove decisive if the game went to penalties.

“I showed Martin (Tocalli, Argentina’s goalkeeping coach) and my psychologist and I said to them, ‘Right, he’s lit the fuse now’,” Martinez said. “I saved that article on my phone and I looked at it for motivation every day in the run-up to the game.”

Martinez was not the only Argentinian who felt provoked that night.

Messi, too, struggled to control his irritation, cupping his ears to Van Gaal and his coaching staff after scoring the game’s opening goal from the penalty spot, and then breaking off from a post-match television interview to goad Wout Weghorst , the Netherlands striker.

“What are you looking at, fool?” Messi yelled. “Go on that way, fool. Go away.”

Aguero, who was nearby in the tunnel, then had to intervene as Weghorst went to try to shake Messi’s hand.

And even in their moment of greatest triumph, as they celebrated with the World Cup, and crates of beer, in the dressing room on Sunday night, the players were eager to tease their rivals as well as celebrate their own achievement. One by one, they called for a “minute of silence” for their great rivals — from Kylian Mbappe , whose hat-trick in the final was to no avail, to Kingsley Coman , who saw his shootout penalty saved by Martinez, and then the whole Brazilian nation.

🎶El vestuario de Argentina🇦🇷: – "Un minuto de silencio…" – "Shhhhhhhh" – Dibu Martínez: "Para Mbappe que está muerto" pic.twitter.com/FOlNCxEzj1 — Tiempo de Juego (@tjcope) December 18, 2022

In truth, Argentina were feeding off the energy of their fans as much as themselves.

No country, with the possible exception of Brazil, were better supported in Qatar, the tone set by over 1,000 supporters turning out at the university campus at 3:45am local time to welcome the squad after they had just arrived from a pre-tournament training camp in neighbouring Abu Dhabi.

“We feel like locals, it seems that we are playing in Argentina,” said Martinez. “The support of the people helped us to put the bad game against Saudi Arabia behind us.”

Remarkable stories abounded of the lengths Argentina fans went to, such was their desire to see the team make history.

The Athletic was told of one supporter who sold his car, quit his job and separated from his wife to be there; others reportedly took out bank loans and racked up thousands of dollars of debt in the hope of witnessing history.

Back home, things were no less intense.

On the eve of the final, it emerged that a collective of hundreds of witches — the so-called La Brujineta (a play on ‘bruja’, the Spanish word for witch, and ‘La Scaloneta’, the nickname for the national team) — were performing rituals designed to absorb negative energy from Argentina’s players. The group now has over 28,000 Twitter followers.

Each Argentina win was greeted with increasingly chaotic scenes of celebration, with Buenos Aires’ Plaza de la Republica serving as a focal point for jubilant fans.

BREATHTAKING footage of Argentina fans at the Obelisk in Buenos Aires 💙💙 (via IG/alepetra_) pic.twitter.com/OxTSp3jcIa — Men in Blazers (@MenInBlazers) December 19, 2022

Each region had its own champion, however, and one of the running themes of Scaloni’s media briefings was the presence of Diego Korol, a journalist with Ole newspaper, who would present Scaloni with a flag, a photo and a message from Pujato, the head coach’s hometown.

Scaloni was gracious, although when Korol conducted his little ritual before that Mexico match, he was visibly irritated. By the time Korol approached him before the final, however, Scaloni had been converted, and when he was shown a video of people in Pujato wishing the team luck, the normally composed coach broke down in tears.

Lionel Scaloni recibiendo el apoyo de Pujato, su pueblo natal. Absolutamente conmovedor. 🥹🇦🇷❤️ pic.twitter.com/A46JFrfCWW — Pablo Giralt (@giraltpablo) December 17, 2022

And throughout the tournament, Argentine success has been accompanied by ‘ Muchachos’ – the ubiquitous chant which has become a rallying cry for fans and players alike.

Adapted from the 2003 song Muchachos by the Buenos Aires punk band La Mosca, with lyrics rewritten by an Argentina supporter named Fernando Ramos, it celebrates Argentina’s sporting culture and history. All the key ingredients are there — Messi, Maradona, the Malvinas (the disputed islands off the Argentine coast occupied by the United Kingdom, and the subject of the 1982 conflict between the nations) and some teasing of Brazil over that defeat in the 2021 Copa America final.

Muchachos and Mbappe: Explaining Argentina's World Cup celebration songs

It has been belted out by fans in the stands and the streets around Qatar, as well as players in the dressing room. Back home, meanwhile, it has become the soundtrack of the summer: after the victory over Australia in the last 16, the driver of a subway train in Buenos Aires had to stop to tell the passengers to stop jumping up and down while singing the song. They carried on. For another 10 minutes.

There have been greater teams to win World Cups during the competition’s 92-year history, and certainly more popular ones. But ultimately, this triumph did not belong to neutrals, or even Messi’s vast band of followers that spans every continent.

This, as Scaloni observed in the giddy aftermath of Sunday’s breathless final, was a victory for Argentina and its remarkable football team, whose discipline, poise and sense of purpose ultimately proved overwhelming for anyone who dared to block their path.

“These players play for their country, for the Argentina fans,” Scaloni said. “There are no rivalries in the team, they play for each other, everyone pushing in the right direction. They have so much pride to play for their country. The players broke their backs. I’m so proud of them.”

(Contributors: Adam Crafton, David Ornstein, Dermot Corrigan, Ed Malyon, Felipe Cardenas, Laurie Whitwell, Oliver Kay, Pol Ballus, Sam Lee)

(Main graphic — photos: Getty Images/design: Samuel Richardson)

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Football and Nationalism in Argentina Essay

Introduction, history of football in argentina, football and nationalism.

Throughout world history, politicians have used sports to promote national and individual agendas. Further, their hold over the past few years has increased, which is evident in Argentina. Among the most popular sports in Argentina is football with Boca Juniors and River Plate as some of the best-performing clubs hailing from the country (Durán et al., 2021). Football serves as a major social outlet, especially for people who are part of Argentina’s diaspora like the United States. In an age of globalization, innovation, and commercialization, football fans can access matches from anywhere at any time. The sport reflects society’s essential aspects, thus, is of considerable relevance to scholars, including historians, sociologists, and political theorists. Most importantly, Argentina football reveals how the sport intertwines with nationalism. Football provides grounds for symbolic competition, which reflects cohesive national pride and identity.

Argentina is globally renowned for producing among the best football teams. The history of football in Argentina traces back to the nineteenth century (Papeliton, n.d.). Like other countries in South America, British sailors introduced football to Argentina while traveling to the Rio de la Plata basin in the 1860s (Bryce et al., 2022). The sport gradually developed in several British schools established in the country and rapidly spread across Argentina. Thus, football clubs were conceived from these schools and featured English names like Banfield, which persist (Durán et al., 2021). However, none of the clubs has attained success as Boca Juniors and River Plate. Both teams have won almost half of Argentina’s football titles and continue to battle in Buenos Aires to be ranked as the best team during the bi-annual Superclasico (Parrish, n.d.). Boca Juniors and River Plate have origins in La Boca, but the teams diverged when River Plate moved to Nunez in 1923 (Parrish, n.d.). While Boca Juniors remained the people’s team, River Plate represented opulent groups of Buenos Aires. Today, the rivalry between the teams is among the most intense in professional football.

Argentina clubs and their players set a precedent for world football and European leagues. Alfredo di Stefano is among Argentina’s early exports to Europe; he played for River Plate but his greatest debut was with Real Madrid. The success of Alfredo di Stefano and Real Madrid was followed by other wins among European clubs. Despite Argentina’s limited success in professional football, the country asserted itself politically as South America’s progressive nation. Ocampo (2020) mentioned that General Juan Peron’s 1946 election ushered in a new political climate. Peron’s tenure welcomed improved living and working conditions. However, Peron’s government failed to eliminate opposition by suppressing free expression by using political arsenals such as torture and imprisonment.

Moreover, Person’s supporters used football to rally, especially among Boka Junior fans. In 1955, a military coup exiled Peron and banned his supporters from seeking political positions Roniger et al., 2018). Although the populist strain and political regression continued, the military helped stimulate the economy. Peron forced the regime to allow free elections, which he won and his death left his wife, Isabel in the presidential seat (Pappas, 2019). Following a coup d’etat launched by the Argentina military, Isabel Person got unseated, leaving the country under the military’s control. Despite the country’s political climate, football remained a symbolic element for Argentines. However, the wake of General Jorge Videla brought with it the junta, a reign of fear and terror, which resulted in the murder of Argentines and lasted until 1983 (Crenzel, 2018; Module 2, 2021). Amid the political turmoil, the country prepared for the FIFA World Cup.

The Videla junta made significant efforts to eliminate political dissent in preparation for the Cup. An example of dissent came from the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo (McFarland, 2018; Papeliton, n.d.). The group included mothers of disappeared or dead political dissidents under the junta. Days before the Cup, the mothers protested at the Plaza de Mayo. When the World Cup commenced on June 1, 1978, the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo used the media showcase of the game to gain the world’s attention on the atrocities facing Argentines under Videla’s government (McFarland, 2018; Papeliton, n.d.). Nonetheless, the World Cup was welcomed with much energy with Argentina dominating most of the games. In the final match, Argentina faced the Dutch and won, awarding the country’s first World Cup. The victory articulated courage and capacity among Argentina players in a privileged arena.

The country’s economy stagnated after staging the World Cup and Videla’s regime failed to find sustainable solutions. Under Videla’s rule, unemployment increased and major unions were banned for fear of opposing the government (Anderson, 2019). According to Adamian (n.d.), the reduction of tariffs and cheap imports further affected the Argentine economy. Consequently, the junta launched to invade Falklands to revamp their mandate but were defeated by the British marines, forcing their surrender and leading to free democratic elections in Argentina. During the invasion, Argentina’s football team lost to Belgium as its top player Diego Maradona struggled to help the team stay ahead but eventually failed to beat Brazil and Italy (Gupta 2021; Module 2, 2021). The reinstallation of a democratic government after the end of the dictatorship would bring Argentina back to its feet, particularly in professional football.

Argentina’s national team restored their pride with the 1986 World Cup. With Diego Maradona as its star player, Argentina stayed ahead in most of the matches for the 1986 World Cup. Argentina claimed the championship title after defeating Germany in the final match (Gupta 2021). The win unified Argentines, free from the influence of a military junta. Additionally, beating England in the quarterfinals appeased the military defeat at Falklands in 1982. A new generation of Argentine players took on after Maradona and the most prominent include Diego Simeone, Gabriel Batistuta, and Javier Mascherano. Thus far, the World Cup dominates conversations in national and global spheres. Argentines’ fascination with football transcends the sport itself; the game is much about politics and culture.

Specifically, football in Argentina can be differentiated in various contexts. For one, football is an expression of national identity and the wider world. According to Anderson, “the nation is always conceived as a deep, horizontal comradeship. Ultimately it is this fraternity that makes it possible” (Module 2, 2021). Argentina assumed national identity through teams like Boka Juniors and River Plate, which mirror skillful professional players. For example, uniform kits usually carry national colors in stadiums across the world, with the country’s emblem on the chest, transcending racial differences. Matches bring together fans from fierce rivalries; Argentina’s Superliga is known for its hype and impact on public order. The most recent example is the 2018 Libertadores Cup or the final to end all finals, a match between River Plate and Boca Junior played in Madrid because of the commotion in Buenos Aires caused by the fans (Durán, 2021). The country takes pride in its football achievements as it has become part of its identity.

Furthermore, the most abstract is the effect of the World Cup Championships and its role in reifying Argentineans. In a contemporary world shaped by globalization, commercialization, mass migration, and dual citizenship, the Cup Championships embody national distinctiveness and global sportsmanship. Therefore, the World Cup serves as a contemporary concretization of nation-ness. Football game wins revolve around national pride as individual players like Diego Simeone and Gabriel Batistuta become global icons. When Argentina’s teams become victorious, they win for the home country. The 1986 World Cup-winning team in Argentina is still a national hero, with legendary figures like Diego Maradona. While the Videla junta led to the progressive disappearance of Argentine virtues of courage and capacity, the national team was determined to overcome the political turmoil (McFarland, 2018). The national team won the 1986 Cup title through those qualities that were essential in rebuilding national pride. Football has become an anchor of meaning for Argentines, an embodiment of national and past values.

Nationalism and football have gained important positions in the contemporary world. In particular, nationalism has particularly become more important than ever for Argentina. The importance of football lies in the creation of nation-ness and its role in a world where globalization, mass migration, innovation, dual citizenship, and commercialization have increased. Consequently, politicians widely use sports to influence socioeconomic and diplomatic relations. Despite political turmoil, Boca Juniors and River Plate transformed the face of football in Argentina. People often exercise sovereignty in the presence of solidarity dependent on shared customs and values. Overall, the premise of nationalism is that people’s loyalty to their country surpasses other groups or individual interests.

Adamian, Fionn. The Ideological Alignment of Free Market Liberals and Military Officials in the Argentinean Junta, 1976-1981. Clio’s Scroll : 72.

Anderson, Perry. 2019. Brazil Apart: 1964–2019 . Verso Books.

Bryce, Benjamin, and David MK Sheinin, eds. 2022. Recasting the Nation in Twentieth-Century Argentina . Taylor & Francis.

Crenzel, Emilio. 2018. Inside ‘State Terrorism’: Bureaucracies and Social Attitudes in Response to Enforced Disappearance of Persons in Argentina . Journal of Human Rights Practice 10, no. 2: 268-286.

Durán, Guillermo, Mario Guajardo, Facundo Gutiérrez, Javier Marenco, Denis Sauré, and Gonzalo Zamorano. 2021. Scheduling the Main Professional Football League of Argentina. INFORMS Journal on Applied Analytics 51, no. 5: 361-372.

Gupta, Amit. 2021. Diego Armando Maradona: Globalization’s first sports superstar. Global Maradona: Man, Athlete, Celebrity, Idol, Hero, Myth Year 2021-Volume 5 : 31.

McFarland, Sam. 2018. Azucena Villaflor, the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo, and Struggle to End Disappearances. International Journal of Leadership and Change 6, no. 1: 7.

Module 2, LTCS2022. 2021. Football: The story of an Argentine passion [PowerPoint slides]. School of Languages & Cultures .

Ocampo, Emilio. 2020. The Populist Economic Policy Paradigm: Early Peronism as an Archetype . No. 731. Serie Documentos de Trabajo.

Papeliton. 78 stories about a World Cup under a dictatorship.

Pappas, Takis S. 2019. Populists in Power . Journal of Democracy 30, no. 2: 70-84.

Parrish, Charles. Superclásicos and Rivalry Antecedents: Exploring Soccer Club Rivalries in Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico Charles Parrish and B. David Tyler Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, North Carolina (USA).

Roniger, Luis, and Leonardo Senkman. 2018. Conspirationism, Synarchism and the Long Shadow of Perón in Argentina. Journal of Modern Jewish Studies 17, no. 4: 434-454.

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IvyPanda . (2023) 'Football and Nationalism in Argentina'. 2 August.

IvyPanda . 2023. "Football and Nationalism in Argentina." August 2, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/football-and-nationalism-in-argentina/.

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Story of Football in Argentina

Published on:

If you aspire to learn more about a land and its people, and genuinely widen your ways of seeing and thinking, it’s a good idea to indulge yourself in an articulation of that region’s culture, be it literature, music, sport, or any other meaning-making entity for its residents.

If the place which has caught your intrigue is Argentina, and you’re voyaging into its Jupiter-sized belly of football, you would’ve made a fascinating and edifying selection. As abundant works of an abundance of scholars would lay open, the sport’s hold on the country’s imagination and reality is such that it is possible to study Argentina’s modern-day history, politics, sociological trends as well as the everyday lives and passions of everyday people through football. 

For over a century, football and Argentina have shaped each other’s identity, and ever since the 1910s there has been a myriad of arguments, claiming that a peculiar, distinctive brand of football is played in Argentina known as La Nuestra , which translates as “Our Way”.

What is La Nuestra?  

In opposition to the historically monotonous and physical nature of the English game, the central tangents of La Nuestra are purely steeped in romanticism, and vociferously vouch for beauty and enjoyment in the spectacle, over winning for winning’s sake. Keeping the spectators on their toes through spontaneity, creativity, improvisation, and magic lies at the crux of La Nuestra. 

Just like how La Nuestra is similar to Joga Bonito in its values, the former also shares parallels with the latter in its conception. 

In a bid to celebrate the centenary of independence and reinforce Argentina’s self-governance, the uniqueness of La Nuestra was intellectually constructed by nationalist, revisionist writings in the pages of publications like El Gráfico. These narratives never dialled down on the use of strong doses of Argentine essentialism to unite the country’s increasingly diverse, immigrant communities into a solitary category. Through their discourse of difference, these opinion formers also wanted to obscure the role of Anglo-Argentines in introducing and subsequently shaping the development of the sport in the country. 

However, much more than the blood or dietary habits of Argentines, La Nuestra developed because of how the sport was played by the working classes of the country, including those belonging to Anglo communities and soccer lines . 

While the British installed the sport in their privately-run schools in 1867, the game rapidly climbed over the school walls and morphed into a wonderful entertainment and socialising outlet for workers, especially those in the railway industry, and immigrants. Not well-versed in the formal rules and norms of football, these communities, playing on streets and make-shift pitches often with make-shift balls, helped in giving imbuing the flavours of La Nuestra. 

On the professional level, conforming to the lofty standards of La Nuestra, Argentina’s national team gained much praise and clout in the period from the 1920s to 1950s, largely under the tutelage of Guillermo Stábile. Although La Albiceleste lost two high-profile finals to Uruguay, and didn’t partake in any world cups from 1934 to 1954, the team performed extraordinarily at the continental level, winning Copa America eleven times between 1921 and 1957. Furthermore, Argentine club teams continued to impress their European counterparts with results as well as their style of play. 

Is this the best matchday of this World Cup? 😱 #Qatar2022 #FIFAWorldCup pic.twitter.com/tHKzzArUfV — FootTheBall FC (@FootTheBallFC) November 28, 2022

The Crisis and the rise of Antifútbol

Then in 1958, the ‘Disaster of Sweden’ stuck, and life came to a standstill in Argentina. Playing in a World Cup for the first time in 28 years, La Albiceleste crashed out in the first round following a humiliating 6-1 hounding from Czechoslovakia. Argentina and its football were tugged down from their high horse of La Nuestra and hurled into a dark pit of existential nothingness. 

Bereft of their identity, a philosophical inquest was in order, and a move towards modernisation and pragmaticism was the verdict.

‘We don’t have team-work, we have inspired individuals. Some always inspired. But for himself. He does not adjust for his team-mate when the adversary annuls his game,’ it was exclaimed in a sports magazine, following a visit to Italy just after the 1958 World Cup.

The athleticism and defensive stoutness of the Italy model was chosen as La Albiceleste’s new vision. A sort of Industrial Revolution, where ends justify the means, was to be applied to their football culture and style. 

The proponents of this new ideology were coaches exposed to Europe like Osvaldo Zubeldia, Victorio Spinetto, and Juan Carlos Lorenzo, who took Argentina to the men’s 1962 World Cup in Chile. However, as life in Argentina continued to become politically regressive and authoritarian, the ruthlessness of the regime started to show on the football pitch as well by the mid-1960s.

Sinister and violent play became a regularity of Argentina’s new fashion of football, now known as antifútbol. While the national team’s conquests stayed confined to the continent, Argentine club football, intricately associated with antifútbol, achieved bundles of sporting successes beyond the continent as well. 

There’s an argument to be made that the ferocious and violent nature of antifútbol became distinctly Argentine in its own way but soon came a time when the players of the national team became disillusioned with the principles of antifútbol. 

The flux between idealism and pragmatism 

Into the 1970s, the crown of the World Cup still eluded La Albiceleste, and antifútbol was tarnishing their image internationally. The ever-enduring debates about the nation’s footballing identity increasingly became cynical towards antifútbol, and a renaissance of tradition and La Nuestra was on the horizon in Argentina. 

Bearing the torch of football aesthetics was the energetic and politically conscious, César Luis Menotti, who thought about the sport, deeply, philosophically, intellectually. After a booming start in club football, Menotti, nicknamed El Flaco (The Slim One), got the reins of La Albiceleste in 1974 and was given time to implement his ideas. 

Labelling antifútbol as ‘right-wing football’ that sucks the joy out of life, Menotti was a proponent of attack-minded football full of eloquent passing, fluency of skill, and risk-taking. Employing his form of La Nuestra – which manifested properly in the knockouts rather than the group stage – Menotti led Argentina to their first men’s World Cup triumph in 1978 in front of thousands of home fans in Buenos Aires. 

After an ordinary showing at the 1982 FIFA World Cup, Menotti was replaced by Carlos Bilardo, who was an antithesis of everything that El Flaco symbolised. Yet again, it was a return of pragmatism at the helm of La Albiceleste. 

A student of Zubeldia’s antifútbol, Bilardo espoused an ideology of winning, and just winning, no matter how. Blessed with the peak powers of Diego Maradona, Bilardo delivered the second and last World Cup victory for La Albiceleste in 1986. 

Following the tenures of these two seminal managers, the ever-lasting debate in Argentine football between idealism and pragmatism, La Nuestra and Antifútbol got another name: Menottisme vs Bilardisme. However, it’s worth saying that their ideas and styles existed on a spectrum, and were never blindfolded in absolutes.

Coming to contemporary times, before Lionel Scaloni, during the disastrous World Cup in campaign 2018, La Albiceleste functioned like an anonymous, name-less collection of players. Scaloni, having quenched the nation’s 28-year-long thirst for a title by winning Copa America in 2021, has created a system where it’s not just about passing to Lionel Messi and hoping for miracles. While Messi is undoubtedly central to the proceedings, Scaloni’s modern style of attacking football and high pressing has galvanized and optimised players in other positions, and constructed a flowing team.  

Perhaps once Messi, Argentina’s most-capped footballer and highest goalscorer, departs from the international scene, in an attempt to fill the black-hole-like void which his departure will create, we might find La Albiceleste once again peeking back to its extended and prosperous history of football traditions and ideologies to find meaning and selfhood.

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'A game for the ages': How the world reacted to Argentina's 'crazy' World Cup final win

Lionel Messi's Argentina won a penalty shoot-out over France after perhaps the wildest 120 minutes in football history

Lionel Messi finally scratched his World Cup itch with Argentina's thrilling penalty shoot-out victory over France in a "final for the ages".

The 35-year-old Argentine maestro scored twice in a breathless encounter, while his Paris Saint-Germain team-mate Kylian Mbappe netted the first World Cup final hat-trick since 1966 as the game finished 3-3 after extra-time.

France fought back from 2-0 and 3-2 down and both sides had chances to win a helter-skelter game at the death before the shoot-out. 

BBC pundits struggled to find the words to describe what they had witnessed, with former England striker Alan Shearer describing it as "bonkers" and Rio Ferdinand plumping for "truly extraordinary".

In his final World Cup game, Messi matched his idol Diego Maradona in winning international football's most coveted prize in what Jermaine Jenas described as "one of the greatest moments in football history".

Shearer said: "Just crazy. The duel in the desert. Anything you can do, I can do better. It's been absolutely relentless... I'd like to say thank you to Messi and Mbappe. The way Argentina kept going and the mentality they had to show, the belief and the courage in the biggest game of their lives. Well done and thank you for entertaining us."

His BBC colleague Rio Ferdinand said: "Truly, truly extraordinary. It looked like Messi had pulled his team back from the brink but then Mbappe scored his second penalty to score his hat-trick...

"This type of game you want to see the best players go at it head-to-head. [Messi and Mbappe] have just gone toe to toe and delivered on a level we've never seen before. This is the best final anyone could have ever wished for."

ARGENTINA HAVE WON THE WORLD CUP!! Look at these scenes. They've done it. #BBCWorldCup #FifaWorldCup pic.twitter.com/caFYhmWO0a — BBC Sport (@BBCSport) December 18, 2022

Gary Lineker called it "a final for the ages", adding: "After a wait of 36 years when the late, great Diego Maradona lifted the World Cup trophy Argentina have won it again. Like the team of 1986 they have done it with the help of a diminutive, left-footed genius... What a game of football."

After Argentina's triumph was secured, BBC commentator Jenas said: "One of the greatest moments in footballing history. I can't believe what I have just witnessed." 

Shearer said: "It's crazy, it's bonkers. For 80 minutes France didn't have a shot on target and they looked leggy, lethargic and tired... they were going nowhere. Then all of a sudden, one crazy challenge, they get the goal, everyone's spirits are up and they're right back in it. What a final."

How Argentina's press reacted

La Nacion said Messi and Argentina had "touched the sky in Qatar" and had been put through the emotional wringer on the way to victory, going "through all the states of mind" on a wild night at the Lusail Stadium.

Diario De Cuyo said Argentina's third World Cup triumph came after a "heart-stopping" game, but Messi and Co managed to prevail from 12 yards.

The leading headline on El Dia was a simple, but effective: "Argentina and Messi, champions!" The newspaper said the final "will go down in history" and the result had left the Argentina fans "delirious".

How France reacted

By Rebecca Rosman and agencies

As Gonzalo Montiel scored the final penalty to confirm Argentina as world champions, an eerie silence fell on a freezing and wet Champs-Elysées in Paris.

“It’s so disappointing. We came back and believed we could do it,” said Romain Cyne, who watched the match from a crowded bar in central Paris. 

The main question on everyone's lips was why France had not turned up in the first half, which they finished two goals behind. An illness that swept through the French team in the week was perhaps to blame, but it came as even more of a shock when they came out of their slumber to draw level.  

“We woke up too late,” Jordan Tambutte, a disappointed France fan who watched the match from Belushi’s bar in Paris. “We showed a real strength of character but when you get to penalties it’s 50-50."

“Les Bleus let us dream,” tweeted French president Emmanuel Macron, who had traveled to Qatar to watch the final from the stands. Macron, a huge football fan, was also seen consoling Mbappé in the moments after the tournament.

Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo saluted the French team for a “legendary” game, while Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, France’s sports minister, tweeted: “At the end of the suspense, sadness. Our Bleus were able to raise their heads to offer us a legendary final. Congratulations to them…dry your tears, you made France proud.” 

L'Equipe opted for a main image of a distraught Mbappe with his face in his shirt and the headline: "Messi for everything". The sports newspaper described it as "a totally surreal" game with "perhaps the most beautiful [ending] in history".

It said Les Bleus has somehow "found unfathomable strength" to fight back from two goals down to take the game to extra-time, with Argentina's win ensuring Messi "entered the legend of the World Cup for good".

L'Argentine remporte la Coupe du monde 2022, après la séance de tirs au but face à la France : https://t.co/dzzb8dTKk5 #ARGFRA #ArgentinaVSFrance pic.twitter.com/yPRPqqOALq — L'ÉQUIPE (@lequipe) December 18, 2022

Le Figaro suggested France had "let their world title slip away", which seems a little harsh given the final was decided on spot-kicks. 

Its online write-up offered a slightly more nuanced verdict, in fairness: "Rarely has a World Cup final delivered such a crazy scenario. But that will not console Kylian Mbappé, author of a hat-trick, nor the rest of the France team."

Le Monde , meanwhile, said Messi's "once-in-a-generation career is now complete" and he is now "definitively in the pantheon of soccer’s greatest-ever players, alongside Pele and Diego Maradona".

What the players and managers said

Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni:

"It's incredible, I sincerely want to talk about the match because it couldn't be that we suffered so much. A perfect match, but we are made to suffer. Football has these things, but the team reacts to everything. I'm proud, now I'm relieved because they did a job. "It's an incredible group that sometimes excites. Everyone is empowered when you trust, one says that he is going to save two and saves them. With the [setbacks] we received today, having won like this has twice the merit.  "That people enjoy it because it's a historic moment and for all those who want to play for the national team. Do this, it's the way you have to play. I don't believe it."

Nicolas Tagliafico:

"We lived it very calmly. Thinking about everything that we lived through... we arrived very calmly. If you don't suffer, it's not worth it and you had to suffer. "I dedicate it to all Argentines and to all those who supported us. I hope it helps us to realise that when we are together we are better."

Rodrigo De Paul:

"We are world champions, I don't know what to say. I never imagined it. We are thousands of kilometers away and... it's the best. With each situation we have suffered. It is for me one of the happiest days of my life." 

France manager Didier Deschamps:

"Those first 70 minutes or so we were playing a very aggressive and dynamic opponent and we just weren't up to the same level for a number of reasons "But, nevertheless, we managed to come back from the dead and we made a magnificent comeback from what was a very difficult situation. "Obviously we have some regrets about that first part of the match and then we go into the extra time, where we could have won it in the last minute. Unfortunately, it didn't go in and then it went to penalties. "We were perhaps lacking a little bit of energy. Some of our key players were lacking that energy. But, nonetheless, we had some young, more inexperienced players who came on and brought some freshness and quality and they managed to get us back into the match and keep the dream alive. "But unfortunately at the end of the day we couldn't achieve that dream."

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Drums, tattoos and T-shirts: Argentina’s World Cup fan odyssey

Guardian photographer Tom Jenkins has covered eight World Cups but even he has been surprised by the team’s level of support in Qatar

The passion of Argentina’s supporters has been one of this World Cup’s most memorable storylines. The atmosphere at their games has been electric and there is a religious feel to their fandom.

Even though a few images of the Pope pop up here and there, it’s more a devotion to the two messiahs of Argentinian football: Maradona and Messi. On the backs of replica Argentina shirts you don’t see any other names. Identical twins at the semi-final against Croatia were wearing T-shirts: one had Lionel Messi on the front, the other Diego Maradona. On flags, banners and headdresses you see mocked-up images showing Maradona handing a ball to Messi – as if imploring him to continue carrying the fight. I’ve seen Maradona-Messi tattoos on arms and legs.

Flags, tattoos and T-shirts all bearing the images of Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi.

A lot of people are making the most of a last chance to see Messi at a World Cup. Argentina’s support is much more than a bunch of young blokes.There are dads with sons, mothers with daughters, parents with very young children. Some of the kids are too young to know what’s going on but it appears they are being taken so they can be told: “You were there when this happened.”

Many supporters have brought young children to games in Qatar.

There were suggestions a lack of alcohol would make atmospheres stale but Argentina fans don’t need drink to fuel their passion. Stadiums open three hours before kick-off and Argentina fans rush in to bag their spots. Lots want to be in the front row and to get flags down. No one sits down and it’s clear plenty aren’t in the places they booked.

There seems to be a hierarchy in the way Argentina fans arrange themselves. The front is for the hardcore – and a small fight broke out at the semi-final between supporters wanting to be in that first row.

Fans fight for the best spot before kick-off in the semi-final.

Generally, though, they have been very good-natured. Fans have been allowed to stand on the perimeter walls and a lot of the drums that beat out the rhythms to the songs are there; drums decorated with Messi, Maradona, or other famous players like Mario Kempes or Gabriel Batistuta. There is one with a map of the Falkland Islands and the words: “Malvinas Argentinas.”

Argentina fans and players celebrate after their second goal, scored by Julián Álvarez, during their last sixteen match against Australia (below).

The Argentina players celebrate with their fans following their group game victory over Poland.

The Malvinas feature a lot in the singing. There are two main songs the stadium reverberates to when Argentina play: “Vamos Argentina” (Let’s go Argentina) and “Muchachos, ahora nos volvimos a ilusionar” (roughly: guys, now we are excited again), adopting a tune by the nine-piece Argentinian band La Mosca, which has become the team’s anthem in Qatar. That’s the one the players were joining in with by the dugouts near the end of the semi-final and have also been singing in front of fans after games, and in the dressing room. It includes the verse:

In Argentina I was born In the land of Diego and Lionel And I will never forget The lads of Las Malvinas

At least an hour after games Argentina fans are still in the stadium drumming and singing. The pitch is empty and everyone else has gone – it is a remarkable sight.

At the start of the tournament Argentina had more fans in Qatar than any other country. Their embassy was quoted as saying 40,000 had travelled, and although Morocco may have had more by the semi-finals, the number of Argentina fans was striking from their first match.

Argentina fans arrive at the Lusail metro stop before their opening group game against Saudi Arabia.

Argentina fans and players sing their national anthem before the quarter-final against the Netherlands.

The followings for European countries have been well down on previous World Cups. It raises the question why Argentinians were not put off, especially when their country is in an economic crisis and it takes about 24 hours to get here from Buenos Aires. It makes you think people must have been saving for years.

Winning the Copa América last year and coming in on an unbeaten run of more than 30 games must have made a difference. They have travelled in hope, to see Messi before he finishes. Messi is also why plenty of locals have adopted Argentina. Sunday’s final will be like a home game for Argentina, whose fans will completely dominate the small number of France supporters. Will that make a difference?

A rare sight – an Argentine fan in fancy dress. The dinosaur clad fan is dancing outside Lusail stadium when they saw Brazil had been knocked out of the World Cup after losing their quarter-final to Croatia 4-2 on penalties.

Argentina fans don’t really do fancy-dress costumes – unlike Brazil – but as for the man who has come to matches dressed as the World Cup … he has to stand with his arms up the whole time to hold a ball on his head. If Argentina end up lifting the real thing it will have been a small sacrifice.

A fan dressed as a giant World Cup outside Lusail Stadium.

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Argentina: World Champion! The Best Moments of the National Team

These were the best moments experienced throughout qatar 2022..

The streets are lit with the colours of the sky. The pavements have lost their greyish shades, the traffic lights do not distinguish between red and green, and thousands of people unite in moving songs. On the afternoon of Sunday, 18th December, 2022, the agony of an infinite wait came to an end. The sun shone brighter than ever, just as the flag of a country crowned World Champion did. That day the heartbeats of 45 million Argentinians fused into one, in the chest of the best player in the world, who raised the most deserved trophy in history and made an entire country happy. There were tears, excitement, suffering, and the most sincere joy. Qatar vibrated alongside supporters that were practically at home, and the World Cup allowed for magical moments throughout more than a month of sheer football.

1. Lionel Messi's Records

There’s no need for an introduction because his talent speaks for itself. He’s the best player in history, who brought the Cup to Argentina, and remains in the hearts of 45 million people. He’s the personification of football, the maximum idol of the country. Lionel Messi continues to pile up records at his 35, and he seems more unstoppable than ever. The greatest number of minutes played, the greatest number of games in a World Cup, the first player to record an assist at five tournaments, the top footballer for Argentina, the player with the highest number of appearances as captain in the World Cups, the South American with the highest number of won tournaments, and the record for the most-liked photo of the entire Instagram platform. Messi’s triumphs continue to accumulate and shape a work of art born on 24th June, 1987 in Rosario.

2. The Exciting Final against France

I t was exciting, indeed, but the tension experienced on Sunday, 18th December in Qatar can’t be put into words. A radiant Argentinian team, eleven players fighting for what they deserved, and an entire country on hold at the mercy of what could be achieved with the skill of legs and a ball. After a quiet first half, France’s first goal came to reaffirm what we know deep down in Argentina: suffering for football is in our DNA. The tie, the extra time, Messi’s goal in the 109th minute, Mbappé’s goal evening the score, and penalties. Millions of hearts beating fast, but not just of Argentinians: the world wanted to see Messi raising the cup. Then, the stellar performance of a goalkeeper who made history (and won the Best Goalkeeper of the World Cup award), and the fine shots of Messi, Dybala, Paredes, and Montiel: Argentina became a world champion after 36 years of dreaming of it. Lionel Messi lifted the greatest achievement of his football career. And there were tears… Many tears.

The icing of the cake: the World Cup final generated the highest Google traffic in the last 25 years of the company.

3. Qatar 2022 memes

A world cup is not complete without the audio-visual support we all love: memes, those humorous resources that tinged the social media and broke sharing records. The funny ingredient is always expected, and the World Cup was no exception, quite the opposite. From Dibu raising his daughter (and the cup), through witches freezing players, Antonio Mateu Lahoz’s controversial refereeing, giving away 9 yellow cards for the national team, to Papu Gómez’s haircut, trying to imitate David Beckham.

  4. The World Cup of Witches

I  choose to believe. The Brujineta was organised, manifested itself, and the triumph was for Argentina. The esoteric level also played a leading role in Qatar 2022, and became one of the great secrets of the World Cup. Frozen football players, candles, and Messi’s saint cards are some of the rituals that were performed to support The Scaloneta. During the matches, different people were in charge of cleaning the negative energies of each of the players, curing the evil eye, and sending positive vibes. This witch-supporter group had such a repercussion that their Instagram page now has more than 10 k followers, and their general actions, being trending topics on Twitter, became one of the great moments of the tournament.

5. “La Abuela lalala” 

Maria Cristina was born in Villa Luro. At 76 years old, she experienced the euphoria of the three world cups that Argentina has won and became a rage in social media. Why? Her nice celebration at the corner of the neighbourhood of Liniers. Her good-luck ritual was not watching a single game, and her subsequent celebration was then stronger, quickly becoming the grandmother of an entire country. Technically, she doesn’t have grandchildren, but that didn’t matter: los pibes de Luro, as these people call themselves, adopted the character, turning her into the most viral grandmother in the country. The song “abuela lalala” is one of the most sung, inspiring thousands of other grandmothers to celebrate in the streets.

6. The Biggest Celebration in History at the Obelisco

A blue and white human tide decorated the corners of the most important avenue in Buenos Aires. Regardless of ages or genders: people united to celebrate the most anticipated triumph of the last 36 years. The ultimate goal was the iconic monument of the Argentinian capital, the famous Obelisco, but the intermediate stops before reaching the final destination outlined the ideal itinerary to celebrate in style. T-shirts, flags, and costumes paraded through the streets of Buenos Aires to the rhythm of drum rolls marking cumbia’s tempo.

 7. Kun Agüero’s Streaming with Messi

Historical is an understatement. On 7th December, the former player of the Argentinian National Team gave the most viewed streaming on his YouTube channel. The star guests? Lionel Messi, Papu Gómez, Leandro Paredes, and Rodrigo De Paul. Among laughter, photos, and jokes, the team showed their most intimate side by sharing their stories and fun anecdotes. One of the funniest stories was the recent haircut of Papu Gómez, wanting to imitate David Beckham’s.

8. “¿Qué mirás bobo? Andá p’allá”

The phrase that did not take long to feature on T-shirts, mugs, and flags. Its author was none other than the Argentinian star, Lionel Messi. The reason? A run-in with the Dutch captain, Wout Weghorst. In an interview he was giving after securing the national team’s place in the semifinals, Messi stopped himself to say the five words with the highest repercussions on all social media: “¿Qué mirás bobo? Andá p’allá” (What are you looking at, silly? Go away).

9. The Aerial Lap of Honour: 5 Million Argentinians in the Street

National public holiday, and the best team in the world arriving in the territory to show the newly achieved treasure at 13,278 kilometres from home. The plan was simple: share the cup with Argentinians in the streets. The caravan departed from the premises of the Argentinian Football Association in Ezeiza, and the final destination was going to be the Obelisco, in the heart of Buenos Aires. But the expectation was exceeded: more than 5 million people waited for the bus with the players in different parts of the capital, jamming up the streets. The section the Scaloneta travelled ended up shorter, and they topped off the tour in a cinematographic way: they toured the Obelisco from the heights, in different helicopters flying over the area.

10. Argentinian Supporters’ Song Beat All I Want for Christmas Is You

December is synonymous with Christmas and, therefore, with one of the most anticipated hits of all years: All I Want for Christmas Is You, Mariah Carey’s famous song that continues to be played non-stop in this festive month. Yet, this year, history took a 360° turn because Argentinian supporters gave the world a new anthem. To the sound of “Muchachos, ahora nos volvimos a ilusionar” (Boys, now we get our hopes up again), the Argentinian band La Mosca recorded an official version together with the original creators. A song loaded with feeling, history, football, and adrenaline, the song that marked a before and after in a world cup, and the one that saw Argentina becoming World Champion.

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Financial figures

• Premium Statistic CONMEBOL: revenue from transactions with AFA 2017-2022
• Basic Statistic Outgoing soccer transfer fees of Argentine clubs 2016-2023
• Premium Statistic Contribution of TV rights to Argentine football clubs' revenue 2023

Revenue of the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL) from transactions with the Argentine Football Association (AFA) from 2017 to 2022 (in 1,000 U.S. dollars)

Receipts of FIFA outgoing transfers from Argentina from 2016 to 2023 (in million U.S. dollars)

Contribution of TV rights to Argentine football clubs' revenue 2023

TV broadcasting rights as share of total revenue of soccer clubs in Argentina in 2023

Audience & support

• Basic Statistic Members of Argentine football clubs 2023
• Premium Statistic Argentine football clubs with most social media followers 2023
• Premium Statistic Favorite Argentine football clubs 2022
• Basic Statistic Largest football stadiums in Argentina 2024

Members of Argentine football clubs 2023

Number of associates to professional soccer clubs in Argentina in 2023 (in 1,000s)

Argentine football clubs with most social media followers 2023

Most popular soccer clubs in Argentina 2023, based on social media followers (in 1,000s)

Favorite Argentine football clubs 2022

Soccer clubs with biggest fan base in Argentina as of May 2022

Largest football stadiums in Argentina 2024

Leading soccer stadiums in Argentina as of March 2024, by capacity (in 1,000s)

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The politicised history of Argentine football

FOOTBALL IS UNDOUBTEDLY the most feverishly followed sport in Argentina, much like its South American neighbours. However, Argentina is distinctive in that football and politics have remained inextricably linked throughout history and this uneasy marriage has at times threatened to detonate on the global stage.

Football, whether critics like it or not, is an extension of politics; it is part of the political system and it is often the case that a sporting issue rapidly becomes politicised. This is an examination of the history of politics and football in Argentina from the progressive Peronist policies of the 1940s, through the junta dictatorship which tainted the 1978 World Cup triumph, to the horror of the Falklands War and how it impacted football .

It was during the presidential tenure of Juan Perón that state intervention in football peaked. The policies of Perón were largely directed at expanding the appeal and strengthening the infrastructure of sport, and football became a main priority. Perón was eager to project a positive image of his country as political propaganda and thus sought to promote the importance of football in order to achieve this.

Perón was immensely popular with Boca Juniors. Fans regularly chanted “Boca, Perón, una Corazon” as a sign of his popularity. Perón saw the potential for harnessing the positive energies of sport for furthering an image of national pride and unity. His party coined slogans such as “Perón, The First Sportsman” and “Perón Sponsors Sports” to cultivate his image as a serial embracer of football.

Perón was shrewd; he saw the potential of football as a vehicle for political advancement. Attendances for football matches in Buenos Aires were at an all-time high during his tenure as president and Perón became aware that the football stadium was the perfect arena for which he could promote his ideals of social mobility and nationalism.

Having permeated the institution of football, Perón assumed command of the media, further driving home his populist policies. He replaced El Gráfíco , the leading Argentine sports magazine, with Mundo Deportivo as he believed the former had failed to adequately applaud his accomplishments in the world of sport. The new magazine was different. With complete control of its output, Perón was able to oversee editorials which regularly used the metaphor of the nation as a sports team, simultaneously driving forward his message of solidarity, teamwork and nationalism.

Considering the direct involvement of the Peronist regime in football, it is surprising to note that the Argentina national side did not travel to the Copa América in 1949 or the World Cup a year later. The reason for this was simple: Perón did not want his footballers to risk losing which he would have regarded as a national calamity. It was the domain of club football where Perón shaped the political and football landscape.

Perón’s finance minister Ramón Cereijo was a prime example of how people in privileged political positions can easily become benefactors for the teams they loved. Cereijo’s team was Racing Club and he helped the club by loaning them significant sums of money which was used in the purchase of players. Indeed, with the direct influence of Cereijo as a club ambassador and prominent benefactor, Racing claimed three successive titles from 1949 to 1951.

The example of the Peronist regime demonstrates the strong ties shared by football and politics in Argentina and it was in post-Perón era that the two really began to overlap. Perón’s government had laid the groundwork for future administrations to use football as a political tool, most notably the Argentine junta, headed by General Jorge Rafael Videla, which saw the Argentina-hosted World Cup in 1978 as a great political opportunity. Videla headed a military coup that assumed power in March 1976 following an economic crisis a year earlier, and his military dictatorship is widely regarded as one of the most violent examples of politics permeating football .

Read  |   Ossie Ardiles, Tottenham and the Falkland Islands

Videla used the World Cup as a distraction from the raging ‘Dirty War’ in Argentina and hoped that success on the greatest football stage would aid in quelling political instability. The triumph for Argentina, helped in no small part by the goals of Mario Kempes, sparked a frenzy of national pride, but the tournament was shroud in controversy, stemming from suspicions that the military junta had fixed it. Although that has never been officially determined, what is clear is how the dictatorship ruled with terror and brutality.

By the start of the tournament in 1978, Videla’s junta was at its peak, exterminating rival parties and manipulating the national press and while millions absorbed the exciting footballing spectacle on their TV sets, thousands of political activists were kidnapped, tortured and murdered. The World cup served as an elaborate mask for the murderous activities of Videla’s rule, with Argentina’s victory in the final confirming, in his eyes, a sense of national pride.

The influence of Videla’s dictatorship on football has been at the centre of much debate. There are many who point to the match between Argentina and Peru during that World Cup as a stark example of Videla’s manipulation and involvement. Argentina won the watch 6-0 and progressed to the final to meet the Netherlands but the story of the Peruvians did not stop there. Argentina needed to win by four goals otherwise they would be knocked out. The fact that they won 6-0 attracted suspicion that political actors were at play regarding the result. Legend surrounds this story that Videla struck a secret political deal with Peruvian president Morales Bermúdez that would see Argentina win the match comfortably. In return, Videla allegedly agreed to take Peruvian political prisoners into Argentina to “disappear them”.

Peru were a great team in 1978. They played with style and physicality, and boasted one of the best players at the tournament in José Velásquez. With Peru losing 2-0 at half-time to the Argentines, the country needed their talisman to spur a comeback and reach the final. Velásquez was substituted and did not reappear for the second half. Velásquez has openly stated over the years that he was substituted due to political pressure from the government. Velásquez insisted that the Peruvians were told that they were to lose the game. Peru’s captain, Héctor Chumpitaz, was also substituted to further pave the way for Argentina’s victory. He said: “Something happened. Our team was changed. I was changed in the tenth minute of the second half – when we were already losing by two goals. There was no reason to change me. I always was an important piece in our team. So what can one think?”

Videla apparently visited Peru’s dressing room prior to kick-off, fuelling speculation that he was the orchestrator of Argentina’s miraculous victory. There too were tales of Argentina providing free grain to Peru in return for their favour. Accounts of what exactly happened that day remain unconfirmed but the involvement of Videla’s junta in the World Cup on a wider scale is well documented and it again highlights the close relationship between politics and football in Argentina.

Less than a mile away from River Plate’s El Monumental stadium where the 6-0 victory was recorded stood the infamous Naval Mechanics School, where members of Videla’s military junta tortured and are believed to have killed more than 5,000 political opponents. Such was the spate of politically-motivated arrests that those who went missing, never to be seen again, were referred to simply as “the disappeared”.

Videla used the World Cup as a public podium and insisted that reports of his regime’s brutality were nothing more than an “anti-Argentine plot”. He even welcomed American  politician Henry Kissinger to the tournament and received standing ovations at every match. Behind closed doors, however, his commanders dealt with activists in the most extreme fashion possible.

Just a thousand metres from the famed El Monumental lay one of the largest torture and detention centres of the dictatorship, so busy it saw approximately four thousand inmates processed by the torture machine. The military regime had many such centres – an estimated 340 in operation during its time in power. While football was being played on the pitch, torture was being practised off it. Prisoners at the Navy Mechanics School (ESMA) could hear both screams of pleasure in the stadium and pain of torture being inflicted in the complex.

Over the years, members of the national squad have spoken out in lament at the obvious political entanglements of the ’78 World Cup.  “There is no doubt we were used politically,” midfielder Ricky Villa said. Striker Leopoldo Luque echoed Villa’s sentiments by saying “with what I know now, I can’t say I am proud of my victory. But I didn’t realize, most of us didn’t. We just played football.”

Read  |   Martyn Clarke and the bridge between Boca Juniors, Argentina and the Falklands

In retrospect, the 1978 tournament was a victory on many levels for Videla. With the team victorious, Videla had achieved a primary objective in displaying Argentina as a strong nation through the heroic exploits of their footballers while he drew attention away from the bleak economic climate and the horrifying actions of his junta.

The most resonating element of Videla’s involvement in football is that football and politics rarely have a happy ending. Through Videla’s dealings and alleged corruption with his Peruvian counterparts, the politicisation of football has left an indelible blemish on the collective consciousness. Players like Villa, Kempes, Luque and captain Daniel Passarella (pictured) have had to live with the idea that they did not win football’s greatest prize fairly, that some higher power worked to ensure their victory. As such, because of politics, the ’78 squad appear as inconspicuous footnotes in the history of Argentine football while the Maradona-led ’86 battalion are continually lionised.

Whereas the 1986 World Cup is celebrated to this day on the streets of Buenos Aires and beyond, with eulogies and tributes paid to Argentine football’s favourite son, Diego Maradona , on a daily basis, the 1978 World Cup lurks as a dark shadow over the nation’s history. The team that won it are not criminalised, but their involuntary association with a corrupt and brutal military regime left scars that are still raw 36 years later.

The actions of Videla’s rule can be paralleled to the existence of the barrabravas in Argentina, historically violent groups of fans with close political affiliations. These hardcore factions, who bear an external resemblance to European ultras , control Argentine football to a wide extent. They originated in the 1950s and began exerting their influence. 1958 was a watershed year for these groups as the killing of River Plate fan Alberto Linker portrayed the bravas as the highly volatile yet tightly institutional organisations that they are today.

The emergence and development of the bravas was aided by directors of Argentine clubs who paid members of the factions to “rule the terraces”. Those who didn’t follow the rules would lose the support of the stands. In a famous example, ex-Boca Juniors striker Jorge Rinaldi recalls how his life became a nightmare after he refused to attend a players’ dinner organised by La Doce (Boca’s barra):  ”From that moment, every time I stepped foot on the pitch I was hit by waves of insults from the stands where the barra stood. It was as if I were one of the most hated enemies and not someone defending the club that they claim to love.”

Today, on top of free admission and travel to away fixtures, the barras, especially at the bigger clubs, earn a comfortable living from the sale of merchandising and refreshments, the control of parking around the stadium and the sale of tickets (at inflated prices). The bravas may look like hardcore football fans, but an examination of their make-up shows that they are an extension of politics, again representing the politicisation of football in Argentina.

There are four key elements which allow the barrabravas to thrive and profit; the state, the Argentina Football Association, the clubs, and the fans. Violence and the threat of violence maintain relations between the bravas, politicians and club officials. They have protection from the police which enables them to provide political support to club officials and politicians. Boca Juniors, River Plate, Racing and San Lorenzo all have barrabravas, which highlights how the politicised nature of football fandom in Argentina exists at the highest levels. The military dictatorship of Videla from 1976-83 created an environment in which politics and violence in football could thrive.

Through the establishment of Peronism and the use of football as a political vehicle, through to the violent and treacherous dealings of General Videla’s dictatorship and finally the notorious history of the hundreds of barrabrava groups in Argentine football, it is clear to see that football and politics in Argentina share a tumultuous but closely intertwined history.

Due to the obsessive, near-religious footballing culture in Argentina and South America as a whole, political leaders have used football as an expression of nationalism and pride, and as a stage for which to project an image of unity and strength whilst covering up a dark and terrifying brutality at the core of a dictatorship.

The barrabravas are an example of the political legacy alive in modern football in Argentina. They maintain close links with politicians and club officials while ruling the terraces of stadiums around the country, duly getting paid for their services.

By  Matt Gault. Follow   @MattGault11

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Argentina Football team – Interesting Facts that you must know

Argentina football team interesting facts that you must know, argentina national football team facts.

• Argentina is one of the most successful national teams in the world, having won the FIFA World Cup trice (1978, 1986 and 2022) and the Copa América a record 14 times.
• Argentina has won the Copa América a record 14 times.
• Argentina has produced some of the greatest footballers of all time, including Diego Maradona, who is widely regarded as one of the best players in history. Maradona led Argentina to victory in the 1986 World Cup and is remembered for his “Hand of God” goal against England in the quarter-finals.
• Argentina’s home stadium is Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespuci in Buenos Aires, which has a capacity of over 70,000.
• The team is known for its passionate and vocal supporters, who are known as “La 12.”
• Argentina has a long-standing rivalry with Brazil, and their matches are known as the “Superclásico.”
• The team’s traditional kit is sky blue and white stripes, with blue shorts and socks.
• Argentina has a strong footballing culture, with many of its clubs consistently performing well in international competitions.
• Argentina has a strong youth academy system, with many talented young players coming through the ranks and making their way into the national team.
• In recent years, Argentina has struggled to replicate its past success, with its best finish in the World Cup being a runner-up finish in 2014. However, the team remains a formidable force in international football and is always a threat in major tournaments.
• The Argentina national team is nicknamed “La Albiceleste” (The White and Sky Blue) due to their white and sky blue striped jerseys.
• Argentina has a long-standing rivalry with Brazil and the two teams have played each other in over 100 matches.
• Some of Argentina’s most famous footballers include Diego Maradona, who is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, and Lionel Messi, who is considered one of the best players in the world and has won numerous awards and accolades throughout his career.
• Argentina has a strong football culture and the national team is widely supported throughout the country.
• The Argentina national team has reached the final of the FIFA World Cup four times, but has never won the tournament as the host nation.
• Argentina has also won 14 Copa América titles, making them the most successful team in the history of the tournament.
• The Argentina national team has a long history of success at the Olympic Games, having won gold medals in both football and basketball.
• Argentina has a strong footballing culture and the country has produced many world-class players over the years, including Gabriel Batistuta, Alfredo Di Stefano, and Sergio Agüero.
• The Argentina national team has a fierce rivalry with Brazil and the two teams have played each other in over 100 matches, with Argentina leading the head-to-head record.
• The Argentina national team has a strong tradition of producing talented attacking players, with many of the country’s most famous players known for their dribbling skills and goalscoring ability.
• The Argentina national team has played in every FIFA World Cup since the tournament’s inception in 1930, with the exception of 1950.
• The Argentina national team has a long-standing rivalry with Uruguay, with the two teams competing in the “Superclásico” match.
• The Argentina national team has a strong following in South America and throughout the world, with many fans supporting the team due to the country’s rich footballing history and the talent of its players.
• The Argentina national team has a strong youth development system, with many of the country’s top players coming through the ranks of the national team’s youth teams.
• The Argentina national team has a number of iconic football stadiums, including Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespuci in Buenos Aires, which is the largest football stadium in Argentina and has a capacity of over 70,000.
• The Argentina national team has a number of famous supporters, including actor Viggo Mortensen and musician Gustavo Cerati.
• The Argentina national team has a number of famous footballing rivalries, including the “Superclásico” with Uruguay and the “Clásico del Río de la Plata” with Brazil.

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• How Football Is Used As...

How Football is Used as a Political Tool in Argentina

Football in Argentina could well be considered a religion. Every week, devotees go and see their favourite team play in an atmosphere of jubilation and, often times, tension. Football in Argentina is both passionate and aggressive, and these traits have been exploited by governments over the years. We find out how the sport has been used as a weapon of politics in Argentina .

Football and politics have been inextricably linked in Argentina for decades, and perhaps the starting point of this at times awkward union can be traced back to the presidency of Juan Peron, one of Argentina ’s most famous head’s of state. Peron, as president of the nation along with his wife Eva Peron, or Evita, were incredibly popular with workers and lower classes, whose rights they championed, and of course, although football is popular among all strata of Argentine society, it really thrives in the lower classes. So the link between the president and football was sure to occur, and so it did, in the form of Peron’s huge popularity with fans of Boca Juniors football club, perhaps the most ardently supported football team in the country.

Chants and praises

They even invented slogans praising Peron, such as “Boca, Peron, one heart”, and Peron called himself “The First Sportsman” in his campaigns. Peron, seizing on the opportunity to politicise the sport, used football to project a positive image of Argentine abroad, and obviously saw the potential of the football stadium as an arena for the promotion of his political agenda. Peron even replaced the national sports magazine El Grafico with his own version of the publication, Mundo Deportivo, which also acted as a vehicle for him to laud his accomplishment within the realm of sport.

Groundwork for dictatorship

However, these links between politics and sport were insignificant in comparison to those that came after them and merely laid the groundwork for the dark forces of the dictatorship , which ruled from 1976 to 1983, to exploit football and use it for its own end. The military junta with General Jorge Rafael Videla at the helm was one of the bloodiest in all of Latin America, with an estimated 30,000 murdered by the regime. Football became a convenient cover and distraction from the atrocities Videla’s regime was committing against the people of Argentina , and Videla orchestrated the hosting of the 1978 World Cup in Argentina , a date which coincides with the height of the disappearances and murders that were taking places throughout the country. To compound matters, Argentina ’s national team won the World Cup trophy, in one respect making the footballers themselves complicit in the distraction tactics of the military government. However, the victory was tainted by allegations that the military regime had fixed the matches for Argentina to win.

World Cup success

Videla certainly saw the World Cup and Argentina ’s success as a political victory and it emboldened his sense of nationalism, something which he wielded over opponents on the field, namely the Peruvian football team, who suffered an embarrassing defeat of 6-0 at the hands of the Argentine side, although the team from Peru was seen as an equal match. Rumours abounded that the result had been fixed so that Peru could trade grain freely with Argentina and that in return Peru could send its political prisoners to Argentina to be dealt with in a way that was becoming all too familiar under Videla’s hand.

Today, much of football is controlled by the barrabrava , or the ruthless football hooligans. Each team has its own band of supporters, and the most violent and corrupt of these are the barrabrava, who ostensibly operate as something of a mafia, controlling ticket sales, players behaviour, the sale of merchandise, car parking, and have a hand in virtually every element of football. The current president of Argentina , Mauricio Macri, was once president of Boca Juniors, the famed team renowned for having one of the most vicious band of hooligans in the country. While football hooliganism has been all but eradicated in other countries where it was historically problematic, notably England, it has been notoriously hard to stamp out in Argentina , with many feeling that it is because of the deep connections between the barrabrava and police, journalists and, of course, politicians, that enables the hooligans to continue to operate at a level above the law.

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Argentina national football team Essay

To me. the definition of an outlier goes far beyond merely person that stands out in a crowd or has an extraordinary endowment. An outlier is something that is situated off from or classed otherwise from a chief or related organic structure. In the fresh Outliers. which was written by Malcolm Gladwell. he gives us many illustrations of outliers such as a mastermind who wasn’t every bit smart as everyone thought he was to a computing machine geek who had all the resources to do it large like Bill Gates.

My illustration of an outlier is Lionel Messi. The features that make Lionel Messi an outlier are his birthday. the environment he grew up in and his endowment. All these features non merely do him an outlier but besides a really successful jock. To get down off. Lionel Messi was born in the association football centered metropolis of Rosario. Argentina. As a immature child. Messi was known as a chance in his metropolis everyone knew that the endowment that he had with his pess was really peculiar and non many in his town come near to him. He ever played association football in the streets of his vicinity and him holding a growing lack ne’er held him back.

As a immature child. Messi played for many squads but his chief squad was called Newells Old Boys where he carried the squad to many shreds till he was 13. At 13. he was identified with a large job. he would non turn and had to hold a really dearly-won intervention to assist him turn. Even though the child had a clear hereafter. the squad that he had ever played for closed the door on him and did non desire to pay for his intervention. Meanwhile. while all this is go oning Spain ace giants. Barcelona. heard of a 13 twelvemonth old down in Argentina that merely regulations his dainties and has a enormous endowment and brought him over.

After seeing him touch the ball twice. they realized that the hereafter was right under their olfactory organ. Barcelona paid for his intervention and saved his calling and today he has been identified as the “Balloon D’or” award victor (which means that he is the best participant in the universe) for three old ages directly and has besides carried the squad to many old ages of domination and besides the overall shred of best squad in the universe. In the fresh Outliers. the debut chapter is named The Matthew Affect which tells us that being born at the right clip has a large consequence on how successful person will truly be. Messi was born on June 24. 1987 to a male parent who worked in a steel mill and a female parent who was a cleansing agent.

As a immature child he grew up watching his older brother who was besides a association football participant. The Mathew Affect applies to Messi because he grew up in a clip where Argentina was a human dynamo in association football which brought a batch of net income to the association football organisation which helped develop many young person

systems and professional nine squads. Messi grew up watching what can arguably be classified as one of the best participants in the history of association football named Diego Maradona. Messi along with other childs would deluge the streets after watching their graven images play on to and be inspired to play association football. Messi would ever hold competition to play against all twenty-four hours and mundane even on vacations.

With association football being a popular athletics in the metropolis of Rosario many Fieldss were made for the childs to play in. If Messi would hold been born any other clip period he would hold witnessed Argentina’s ruin and ne’er would hold seen what is today his inspiration. Diego Maradona and who knows if he would still hold that desire and thrust to play association football. Another factor that makes Lionel Messi an outlier is the sum of support he got. Turning up. non merely did he watch his brother drama football. but he besides had a grandma Ho would ever take him to play association football when his parents were at work. His grandmother was the first individual to take him to a professional squad to seek out. She would sit and watch every game and ever encouraged him to play and ne’er give up. When she passed off. Messi was truly hurt but appreciative and every clip he scores he dedicates his end to his grandmother.

When Messi was diagnosed with his growing perturb the lone squad that would pay for this intervention was Barcelona which meant that he had to travel to Spain. His male parent had to discontinue his occupation and go forth his life in Argentina to back up his boy in his determination. If this intervention had non been done so Messi’s calling would hold been over. Many people don’t have this support because their grandmother is non ever involved or the parents are excessively busy working and seeking to do terminals run into to back up their kids. Besides many people don’t have the support of a professional athleticss squad to pay for a dearly-won intervention to salvage their callings.

All these factors of support make him and outlier and without this support who knows if Messi would hold made it out of the streets of Argentina. Last but non least. Lionel Messi’s extraordinary endowment makes him an outlier. Not merely is he good at what he does but he besides has the unbelievable advantage of being a natural born jock and holding natural endowment. Many people would state that there’s no such thing as being born with endowment but Messi is clearly a degree above his competition.

Bing a 13 twelvemonth old and be given a professional contract (which was written on a serviette in a eating house!) is non something that happens every twenty-four hours non that but he besides made his first squad introduction at the age of 16 and besides hiting on his first lucifer doing him the youngest participant in the conferences history to make that. In 2006. Messi was portion

of the historic Barcelona squad that won everything at that place was to win and him being the team’s taking scorer/player. In the twelvemonth 2012. he broke the all-time record of ends scored in a twelvemonth. His concluding sum of ends was a flooring 91beating the old record of 85 which was set by a German participant named Gerd Muller.

“My record stood for 40 old ages – 85 ends in a twelvemonth – and now the best participant in the universe has broken it. and I’m delighted for him. He is an unbelievable participant. mammoth. ” That was a quotation mark said by the great participant Gerd Muller. Lionel Messi has won the Ballon D’or four old ages in a row which is the highest single award any participant can win which makes him the best participant in the universe for four old ages in a row. The sum of endowment Lionel Messi has clearly makes him an outlier sense there is close to none that have the sum of endowment he has. To reason. Lionel Messi to me is an outlier. he has overcome many hardships and earned high degrees of success. The twelvemonth in which he was born in. the support he had. and the sum of natural endowment he has are all clear grounds of a true outlier.

Lionel Messi bio hypertext transfer protocol: /www. lionelmessi. azplayers. com/lionel-messi-biography. hypertext markup language Brief life of Lionel Messi Lionel Messi video’ hypertext transfer protocol: /www. life. com/people/lionel-messi-555732 Video of his life every bit good as a drumhead right under. Lionel Messi narrative hypertext transfer protocol: /bleacherreport. com/articles/237096-the-lionel-messi-story-how-did-he-get-to-the-top-of-the-world Story of how he defeated hardship and made it to the top Lionel messi narrative picture hypertext transfer protocol: /www. youtube. com/watch? v=LaO8NHWLwME Video of his narrative portion 1 Lionel Messi narrative picture hypertext transfer protocol: /www. youtube. com/watch? v=9ZWY8IhIFt8 Video of his narrative portion 2

Corps. Lance. “This Is Incredible! Goal Machine Messi Stunned as He Bags Fourth Ballon D’Or Award after Record-breaking Year. ” Mail Online. N. p.. June-July 2011. Web. 13 Oct. 2013. Martinez. Jack J. “Lionel Messi Biography. ” Biography Online. Messi Bio. Apr. -May 2013. Web. 13 Oct. 2013.

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Essay On Football for Students and Children

500+ words essay on football.

Essay On Football- Football is a game that millions of people around the world play and love. It can be called a universal game because every small and big nation plays it.

Moreover, it’s a great relaxer, stress reliever, teacher of discipline and teamwork . Apart from that, it keeps the body and mind fit and healthy. It’s a team game that makes it a more enjoyable game as it teaches people the importance of sportsmanship. Leadership, and unity .

History of Football

The history of football can be traced back to the ancient times of the Greeks. Everyone knows that the Greeks were great sportsmen and have invented many games.

Football happens to one of them. A similar game like football is played in many countries but the latest version of football that we knew originates in England. Likewise, England formulated the first rule of the game. From that day onwards the football has progressed in ways we can’t imagine.

Importance of Football

Football is an important game from the point of view of the spectator as well as the player. This 90 minutes game is full of excitement and thrill.

Moreover, it keeps the player mentally and physically healthy, and disciplined. And this ninety-minute game tests their sportsmanship, patience, and tolerance.

Besides, all this you make new friends and develop your talent. Above all, it’s a global game that promotes peace among countries.

Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas

How to Learn Football

Learning any game is not an easy task. It requires dedication and hard work. Besides, all this the sport test your patience and insistence towards it. Moreover, with every new skill that you learn your game also improves. Above all, learning is a never-ending process so to learn football you have to be paying attention to every minute details that you forget to count or missed.

Football in India

If we look at the scenarios of a few years back then we can say that football was not a popular game in except West Bengal. Also, Indians do not take much interest in playing football. Likewise, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) has some limited resources and limited support from the government.

But, now the scenario has completely changed. At this time football matches the level of cricket in the country. Apart from that, the country organizes various football tournaments every year.

Above all, due to the unpopularity of football people do not know that we have under-17 and under-23, as well as a football team.

Football Tournaments

The biggest tournament of Football is the FIFA world cup which occurs every 4 years. Apart from that, there are various other tournaments like UEFA cup, Asian Cup (AFC), African completions (CAF) and many more.

To conclude, we can say that football is very interesting that with every minute takes the viewer’s breath away. Besides, you can’t predict what’s going to happen the next second or minute in football. Apart from all this football keeps the one playing it fit and healthy. Above all, it can be a medium of spreading the message of peace in the world as it is a global game.

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