The French Football Federation (FFF) announced on Tuesday that it will file a complaint against the Argentine national team for “unacceptable racist and discriminatory comments” made by the players after the Albiceleste’s victory over Colombia in the Copa America final on Sunday in Miami. A video posted on Instagram by Argentine midfielder Enzo Fernandez, who plays for Chelsea, showed Argentines celebrating, chanting racist chants such as “Run the ball… They play in France, but they are all from Angola.”
It was precisely Fernández’s teammate at Chelsea, the Frenchman Wesley Fofana, who was one of the first to repudiate the hate message, calling it “uninhibited racism.” Enzo Fernández then took to his Instagram and X accounts to offer an apology in English. “I want to sincerely apologize for a video posted on my Instagram channel during the national team celebrations. The song includes extremely offensive language, and there is absolutely no excuse for those words,” he wrote. “I am against discrimination in all its forms and I apologize for getting carried away by the euphoria of our Copa America celebrations. That video, that moment, those words do not reflect my beliefs or my character. I am truly sorry.”
“Given the seriousness of these comments, which are contrary to the values of sport and human rights, the president of the Federation has decided to contact his Argentine counterpart and FIFA directly to file a legal complaint for racist and discriminatory comments,” the French entity said in a statement.
French Sports Minister Amélie Oudéa-Castéra also made her complaints known on social media. “Pathetic. Behaviour that is all the more unacceptable if it is repeated,” she said, referring to previous episodes. “FIFA: any reaction?” Racist chants of this tone were heard two years ago during the World Cup final in Qatar, when Argentina beat France on penalties.
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