Argentina minister sacked from job after asking Lionel Messi and AFA to apologize for racist chant aimed at France players
Lionel Messi and Argentina's second consecutive Copa America victory celebrations were cut short after Enzo Fernandez went live on Instagram from the team bus. In the clip, Fernandez and other players sang an allegedly discriminatory song about the French team where they questioned the heritage of the French players, particularly Kylian Mbappe.
"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," sang the Argentina players in chorus.
The song also featured allegedly transphobic comments about Mbappe dating transgender model Ines Rau.
The entire European footballing fraternity erupted after the clip went viral, with the French Football Federation threatening to take legal action against the said remarks by the Argentina players.
In a recent development, Argentina's deputy sports minister Julio Garro was fired after he implored Lionel Messi and his teammates to apologize to the French players in an interview with radio station Urbana Play. He also said the same about the Argentina Football Federation president Claudio Tapia.
"Come out and offer the appropriate apologies, as should the Argentine Football Federation president," Garro urged.
It is important to note that Lionel Messi wasn't involved in the celebrations and was not on the team bus when the chants were issued.
Hours after the interview, Argentina's president Javier Milei sacked Garro. Milei explained the termination in a social media post.
“The Office of the President states that no government has the right to tell the Argentine national team, world champions and double Copa America champions, or any other citizen, what to comment, what to think and what to do. That is why Julio Garro ceases to be the under-secretary of sport,” he said (via GOAL).
"Nobody taunts anyone" - Rodrigo De Paul reiterates what Lionel Messi said after Argentina's Copa America win
Argentina's talisman Lionel Messi has been in the limelight since Enzo Fernandez's video went viral, despite not being in the video. In a recent interview with OLGA, his teammate Rodrigo De Paul came to Messi's defense and explained that the 37-year-old had instructed the team not to taunt or troll anyone after the Copa America final.
“When the final ended, Messi came and the first thing he said was, ‘nobody taunts anyone, let’s celebrate and enjoy our victory’,” De Paul said (via Indian Express).
De Paul further highlighted the discrimination that South American players face from their European counterparts. According to him, they always find a way to downplay South American footballing achievements by making excuses.
He also acknowledged the sensitivity of the clip and the chants and implored Fernandez's club teammates to call him up and resolve their differences instead of posting about the remarks on social media.