To Gianni Infantino, the FIFA Council and the FIFA Disciplinary Committee

We call on FIFA to exclude the Argentine Football Association’s senior men’s national team from the 2030 FIFA World Cup, including its qualifying competition, following a transparent disciplinary investigation into repeated racism, supporter misconduct and unacceptable player behaviour.

The 2026 World Cup should have represented unity, diversity and respect. Instead, several incidents associated with Argentina’s matches raised serious concerns about whether FIFA is enforcing those values consistently.

During Argentina’s match against Cape Verde, FIFA opened an investigation after a supporter wearing an Argentina jersey appeared to tell Black American streamer IShowSpeed to “go cry to the zoo.” FIFA responded that racism, hate and discrimination have no place in football. At the following Argentina–Egypt match, another supporter was filmed making a monkey gesture toward the same Black spectator. These were dehumanising acts of racial abuse, not football rivalry or harmless “banter.” (Associated Press, Globo Esporte)

Supporters of Cape Verde and Egypt also reported having beer and bottles thrown at them by Argentina supporters during World Cup matches. These allegations must be fully investigated rather than dismissed because only a minority of supporters were responsible. (Al Jazeera)

The concerns are not limited to spectators. After Argentina won the 2024 Copa América, members of its national team were recorded participating in a chant about the African heritage of French players. The French Football Federation formally condemned the chant as racist and discriminatory and referred the matter to FIFA. FIFA confirmed that it was investigating the video. (French Football Federation, Reuters)

After defeating England in the 2026 semi-final, several Argentina players also posed with a Malvinas banner reading “Las Malvinas son Argentinas.” This occurred even though supporters had reportedly been prohibited from bringing politically divisive Falklands/Malvinas flags into the match under FIFA’s stadium code of conduct. The British government subsequently called for a FIFA investigation. Whatever position anyone holds on the sovereignty dispute, a World Cup team should not use post-match celebrations against the opposing country to promote a contested territorial claim. FIFA’s rules prohibit political or ideological messages that are inappropriate for a sporting event, and Argentina’s federation had previously been fined for displaying the same slogan before the 2014 World Cup. (Associated Press)

The 2026 World Cup final provided further evidence of unacceptable conduct. Enzo Fernández was sent off after receiving a second yellow card for a challenge on Pau Cubarsí. Following the final whistle, Leandro Paredes became involved in a physical confrontation with Spanish players and was also shown a red card. Such scenes fall far below the standards expected in football’s most prestigious competition. (Associated Press, The Guardian)

The Argentine Football Association has previously acknowledged that it carried a suspended sanction requiring a match without supporters because of discriminatory chanting during World Cup qualifying. This demonstrates that the association was already on notice that stronger prevention was required. (Argentine Football Association)

FIFA’s disciplinary framework makes member associations responsible for discriminatory conduct by their supporters. FIFA’s own legal analysis confirms that repeat or serious offences can result in points deductions, forfeiture or expulsion from a competition. A one-tournament exclusion is therefore a remedy FIFA has the authority to consider. (FIFA Legal Journal)

This petition does not accuse every Argentine citizen or every Argentina supporter of racism. Many undoubtedly reject this conduct. It asks FIFA to hold a member association and its representative team accountable for repeated incidents connected with its players and supporters.

We call on FIFA to:

• Conduct and publish a consolidated, independent investigation into the reported discriminatory and violent incidents connected with Argentina’s 2026 World Cup campaign.
• Exclude Argentina’s senior men’s national team from the 2030 World Cup qualifying competition and finals.
• Impose meaningful individual suspensions on any players or officials found responsible for violent, discriminatory or seriously unsporting conduct.
• Permanently ban identified perpetrators of racial abuse from FIFA events.
• Require the Argentine Football Association to implement independently monitored anti-racism education, supporter-identification measures, reporting systems and victim-support programmes before it can return to World Cup competition after 2030.

Football cannot claim to oppose racism while responding to repeated abuse with statements and modest fines. If FIFA’s promise of zero tolerance is to mean anything, serious and repeated misconduct must have serious sporting consequences.

No team is bigger than the values football claims to represent. FIFA must act.