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July 18 – The racism row concerning members of Argentina’s Copa America-winning squad has taken a dramatic twist with the sacking by the government of undersecretary for Sports, Julio Garro.
Garro was shown the door after he reportedly demanded that Lionel Messi should apologise for the chants sung by his side following victory against Colombia.
A video posted on Instagram by Chelsea’s Argentine midfielder Enzo Fernandez, widely viewed on X, showed Argentina players appearing to question the African heritage of France’s black and mixed-race players while on the bus to the airport.
One of Fernandez’s Chelsea teammates, France defender Wesley Fofana, posted the video on his social media accounts Tuesday, calling it “uninhibited racism”.
The French FA have pledged to file a complaint with FIFA over “racist and discriminatory remarks” while Fernandez, who is under investigation, has himself issued a lengthy apology.
According to media reports, one of the verses in the song was: “They play for France, but their parents are from Angola. Their mother is from Cameroon, while their father is from Nigeria. But their passport says French.”
The song also had derogatory references about France and Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappe.
Although Messi was apparently not on the bus at the time of the incident, Garro, who was appointed Argentina’s sports undersecretary only in March, demanded an apology from him and from Argentine Football Association (AFA) Claudio Tapia.
“The national team captain must also come out to apologize for this case. The same [goes for] AFA president. I think it is appropriate. It leaves us as a country in a bad position (after) so much glory,” Garro said.
Many observers might concur with such sentiments yet straight after his comments were aired, Argentina President Javier Millei’s Office announced Garro had been sacked.
“No government can tell what to comment, what to think or what to do to the Argentina…
Source link : https://www.insideworldfootball.com/2024/07/18/argentina-sacks-sports-minister-demanding-messi-apologises-teams-racist-chanting/
Author : Paul Nicholson
Publish date : 2024-07-18 10:52:01
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