Leandro Paredes’ sister, Barbara, sparked fresh controversy after making comments about the Falklands following Argentina’s FIFA World Cup final defeat to Spain.
After their 2-1 win over the Three Lions in the semifinal, Argentina players reignited their dispute with England over sovereignty of the Falkland Islands, a British Overseas Territory, by unfurling a white banner that read, “Las Malvinas Son Argentinas,” which in English translates to “The Falklands belong to Argentina.”
While FIFA rules prohibit the display of political messages, the White House FIFA task force reportedly gave Lionel Scaloni’s side the green light to redisplay their Falklands banner if they had defeated Spain on Sunday. However, that did not age well, as the South American giants were completely outclassed by Spain at the New York New Jersey Stadium.
Despite the heartbreaking defeat, Barbara took pride in her country defeating England en route to the World Cup final and claimed that the Falklands belong to Argentina.
The Falklands have been a British territory since 1833, but in 1982, Argentina invaded the territory, which resulted in a conflict that lasted 74 days between the two countries.
However, the British eventually regained control after Argentina surrendered. Since then, the South American country has repeatedly asserted sovereignty over the islands, a claim the UK rejects.
Paredes, on Tuesday, broke his silence after La Albiceleste fell short of becoming the third country to win back-to-back FIFA World Cup titles.
The midfielder was lucky not to see red during the final match as he got away with multiple fouls. He went on to court further controversy post-match after being involved in a brawl with Eric Garcia and Gavi.
According to a report from The Independent, Paredes was not shown a red card for his post-match tiff with Garcia and Gavi. Instead, FIFA said it has opened an investigation into the full-time fracas, with a Disciplinary and Ethics Prosecutor appointed.
Paredes and his teammates went into the match against Spain as defending champions, having won the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
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