Argentina’s Football Association is officially taking its fight to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, after Fifa flat-out rejected their appeals against the heavy punishments slapped on the team and midfielder Leandro Paredes. This isn’t just about a few matches, either; we’re talking about a World Cup final that spiraled into a full-blown international incident.
Paredes Facing A Huge Suspension After Final Fracas
Leandro Paredes is still staring down a brutal 10-match ban for his role in the wild on-field clashes right after Argentina’s 1-0 loss to Spain in the 2026 World Cup final. On top of that, he’s been hit with a $90,000 fine. Fifa upheld that suspension, meaning the appeal did absolutely nothing for Paredes. His teammate Nahuel Molina initially got a seven-game ban and a matching $90,000 fine, but at least his suspension got a slight break from Fifa, cut down to four games. Still, that’s a lot of missed time for both players.
The source of all this drama? A chaotic fracas on the pitch right after Spain clinched the win. Paredes, Molina, Thiago Almada, and even assistant coach Roberto Ayala were all reportedly involved. Things got super heated, with Paredes appearing to shove Spain’s Eric Garcia right by the throat. Then, unused substitute Gavi tried to step in and got forced to the ground by Almada. Fifa clearly didn’t mess around, bringing in a disciplinary and ethics prosecutor to figure out exactly what went down before handing out these sanctions.
AFA Fined Big For Off-Field Actions
It’s not just the players getting hammered. The Argentina Football Association itself got slapped with a hefty $321,000 fine. Fifa cited breaches of its disciplinary code, hitting the AFA for using a sports event for non-sporting demonstrations, team misconduct, and even discriminatory chants and gestures from their supporters. This whole thing goes beyond the final whistle, with some serious baggage from earlier in the tournament.
Remember that World Cup semi-final win against England, a tight 2-1 victory? Well, apparently, several Argentina players held up a banner claiming sovereignty over the Falkland Islands, which is a British overseas territory. That’s a huge political statement, and Fifa is obviously not having any of that in a sporting event. Now that Fifa has said “no dice” to their appeals, the AFA is making it clear they’re not done. Their next move is to formally ask Fifa for the exact reasons behind these decisions before they even fully kick off the process with the Court of Arbitration for Sport. This whole saga isn’t over, not by a long shot.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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