Argentina VP refers to England as ‘invaders’ ahead of World Cup semi final

Argentine Vice President Victoria Villarruel on Wednesday invoked her country’s long history of tensions with England in a social media post ahead of the World Cup semifinal.

Villarruel, in a post on social platform X, criticized the English national team as “invaders” and “usurping pirates” ahead of their Wednesday matchup with Argentina. The winner of the game will go on to play Spain in the final tournament on Sunday.

“I’m not going to be politically correct or cold-hearted,” she wrote, as translated from Spanish. She added that the matchup between England was “more than just another game” and that “against the English, it’s always something more.”

The matchup between the two nations has reignited tensions over their 1982 war for control of the Falkland Islands, an archipelago just off the coast of the South American country.

Both England and Argentina — which refers to the archipelago as the Islas Malvinas, or Malvina Islands — claim control over the Falkland Islands. Argentina invaded the islands in 1982 in a bid to retake control from England but failed to do so in a war that claimed more than 250 British and 600 Argentine lives.

“It’s the Malvinas, it’s Diego, it’s Leo’s last one, and it’s putting the brakes on the invaders,” Villarruel wrote, quoting part of a song sung by Argentine players.

The song refers to the late Argentine soccer great Diego Maradona and current Argentina captain Lionel Messi, who is expected to retire before the next World Cup in 2030.

Tags

argentina

england

Falkland Islands

Islas Malvinas

lionel messi

Malvina Islands

spain

Victoria Villarruel

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