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UK Conservative Party leader, Kemi Badenoch has backed a FIFA investigation into Argentina's display of a banner reading "Las Malvinas son Argentinas" after their World Cup semi-final victory over England, insisting the Falkland Islands are "British."
Argentina's players held up the banner after their 2-1 win, reigniting the long-running sovereignty dispute.
FIFA confirmed its disciplinary committee is assessing whether Argentina breached rules prohibiting political messages.
Reacting in a video posted on X on Friday, Badenoch said, “The Falkland Islands are British. The Conservatives will always defend them. We know that political messaging and slogans are banned by FIFA, so they absolutely should investigate. It was a very silly banner.
“The fact is the Falkland Islands are British, and the Conservatives will never stop defending the Falklands. We did it before, and we’d do it again.”
Backing calls for an investigation, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government maintained that the Falklands’ status was not up for debate.
Downing Street said, “The World Cup might not be ours, but the Falkland Islands definitely are,” while Business Minister Peter Kyle described the banner display as “an egregious violation” of FIFA rules and said, “Politics needs to be separate from football.”
The Falkland Islands, a British Overseas Territory in the South Atlantic, have remained at the centre of competing claims for decades. The dispute culminated in the 1982 Falklands War, a 74-day conflict in which 649 Argentines, 255 British servicemen and three islanders were killed.
Bad losers
Please stop giving this silly girl audience