Argentina fans in Miami during the World Cup (Image: PA)
Sir Keir Starmer has told Argentinian players to stick to football after a furious row erupted over their provocative Falkland Islands chant.
The Prime Minister dismissed suggestions that the islands should be given to Argentina, saying they would remain British as long as local residents want them to.
It came after the Argentinian squad broke out into song in their dressing room following their quarter-final win over Switzerland. Referring to the Falklands by their Spanish name, the Malvinas, they said: “For the Malvinas, For Diego [Maradona], For Leo’s [Messi’s] last one.” They also joined in with supporters as they sang another anti-English chant, which has been around for decades: “And you see it, and you see it, anyone who doesn’t jump is an Englishman.”
Argentina’s foreign minister, Pablo Quirno, also tried to reopen the debate about the islands in an essay for La Nacion newspaper, suggesting that a referendum showing support for UK sovereignty was illegitimate because of a population that had been “artificially implanted by the occupying power”.
British armed forces liberated the Falklands following an Argentine invasion in 1982.
Asked what Sir Keir made of reports about some chanting about the Falklands from Argentine fans, his spokesman said: “I think the Prime Minister’s view is that football should be about the game and about bringing people together.
“That’s what fans want to see.”
Sir Keir’s spokesman added: “The Falkland islanders are British with a right to determine their own future.
“The UK’s position is clear.
“The islanders have repeatedly expressed their wish to remain a British overseas territory, and their right to self-determination is paramount.”
Asked whether the idea that the population had been planted to deliver that vote was wrong, he said: “Well, I just rejected that.
“As I say, the Falkland islanders are British with the right to determine their own future.”
England will face Argentina in Atlanta on Wednesday after their 2-1 victory against Norway last week.
Buenos Aires has repeatedly claimed sovereignty over the Falkland Islands and was defeated in a short but bloody war after mounting an invasion in 1982, the shadow of which hangs over UK-Argentine relations to this day.