FIFA is facing accusations of hypocrisy after an England fan's flag depicting a submarine was banned from World Cup stadiums, only for Argentina players to later celebrate with a banner declaring "The Falklands are Argentine." Lewis Watts, a 31-year-old shipyard worker from Barrow, England, stated that he and other supporters of Barrow AFC were informed their local club's flag, which features a submarine, was prohibited due to its military imagery. FIFA's policy prohibits "any materials... that are of a political, offensive and/or discriminatory nature, containing wording, symbols or any other attributes aimed at discrimination of any kind against a country... or political opinion or any other opinion."
FIFA also has regulations from the International Football Association Board (IFAB) that state, "equipment must not have any political, religious or personal slogans, statements or images." Players are warned that any violation could lead to sanctions from the competition organizer, national football association, or FIFA.
Watts expressed his frustration, calling FIFA "complete hypocrites" and questioning the enforcement of their rules. "It's just typical double standards from FIFA, complete hypocrites – and what will they do to Argentina? Slap them on the wrist and give them a fine; they should be kicked out," he told the Daily Mail. He recounted having to use gaffer tape to cover the submarine on his club's flag for previous England matches to avoid it being removed.
Despite FIFA and Argentina's agreement that no political slogans or statements would be permitted at the Atlanta Stadium, Argentina players Lisandro Martinez and Giovani Lo Celso were seen holding and waving a flag that read "Las Malvinas so Argentina's," translating to "The Falklands are Argentine." The Falkland Islands are a British Overseas Territory that Argentina disputes, referring to them as Las Malvinas, and were the subject of a war in 1982. FIFA stated that the Barrow AFC flag was banned because it included "imagery of weapons or military (submarine)," which are not permitted under their policy. They offered to approve the flag if the imagery were covered.
Watts highlighted the perceived inconsistency, stating, "It feels extremely harsh that our flag was banned under FIFA's rules, and yet that one they danced around and which was clearly smuggled in despite the ban was not removed." He emphasized that the Barrow AFC flag represented local heritage, as the town has a long history of shipbuilding and a submarine on its club badge. "We were just underlining our heritage and how proud we are of where we are from," Watts said.
This is not the first time political messaging has surfaced at the World Cup. FIFA previously fined the Argentine Football Association £20,000 in 2014 after its players held up a banner with the same slogan before a friendly match against Slovenia.