Buenos Aires issued an apology to France following comments from Argentina’s vice president, which labelled the European nation “colonialist” and its citizens “hypocrites” amid a controversy over alleged racist chants by Argentine footballers.
The office of President Javier Milei clarified on Friday that the vice president, Victoria Villarruel, made these comments personally, not reflecting the official government stance. They sent a senior official to the French embassy to manage the diplomatic fallout.
FIFA investigates the incident involving chants sung by Argentine players, including Chelsea and Argentina midfielder Enzo Fernandez, age 23, following their Copa America victory over Colombia in Miami. The offensive chants, which were live-streamed on social media by Fernandez from the team bus, targeted French star striker Kylian Mbappe and included racist and homophobic slurs.
Fernandez has since apologized for his part in the chants, and Chelsea has initiated an internal disciplinary action against him. The French Football Federation has complained to FIFA regarding the matter.
Adding to the controversy, on Wednesday, Villarruel defended Fernandez on X, posting, “No colonialist country is going to intimidate us because of a stadium chant nor for speaking truths they do not want to admit. Enough with feigned outrage, hypocrites.”
This diplomatic skirmish surfaced just as Milei was scheduled to visit Paris for the Olympic Games’ opening ceremony. Presidential spokesman Manuel Adorni reassured on Friday that diplomatic relations with France remain unaffected despite the tensions.
In a related development, Argentina’s under-secretary for sports, Julio Garro, was dismissed after suggesting that team captain Lionel Messi and the Argentine Football Association should formally apologize for the chants.
