FIFA announced on Wednesday that it is opening an investigation into racist chants by Argentina players following their Copa America victory. “FIFA is aware of a video circulating on social media and the incident is being looked into,” stated a spokesperson for the world football governing body. The spokesperson added that “FIFA strongly condemns any form of discrimination by anyone, including players, fans, and officials.”
The chants were captured during a live video posted on social media by Chelsea and Argentina midfielder Enzo Fernandez from the team bus after the Copa victory over Colombia in Miami on Sunday. Some players, including Fernandez, sang a chant originating from the 2022 World Cup final, in which Argentina defeated France. The song targets France’s star striker Kylian Mbappe among others and includes racist and homophobic slurs.
Chelsea previously announced they had launched an internal disciplinary procedure against Fernandez over the incident. Fernandez has apologized, and the club stated that they have initiated an “internal disciplinary procedure.”
“Chelsea Football Club finds all forms of discriminatory behavior completely unacceptable,” the club said. “We acknowledge and appreciate our player’s public apology and will use this as an opportunity to educate.”
Fernandez, who joined Chelsea from Benfica for a Premier League record fee of £105 million ($136.8 million) in 2023, expressed in his apology: “The song includes highly offensive language, and there is absolutely no excuse for these words. I stand against discrimination in all forms and apologize for getting caught up in the euphoria of our Copa America celebrations.”
Javier Mascherano, the coach of Argentina’s Olympic football team, defended Fernandez, suggesting that the video was “taken out of context.” Mascherano said, “Argentines, if there’s one thing we’re not, it’s racists, far from that. I know Enzo, he’s a great guy. He doesn’t have any problems like that.” He added, “Often, as part of a celebration, you can take part of a video and take it out of context. If there’s one thing we are as a country, it’s a totally inclusive country. People from all over the world live in Argentina, and we treat them as they should be treated.”
The French Football Federation (FFF) lodged a complaint with FIFA about the chants on Monday. FFF president Philippe Diallo “condemned with the greatest firmness the unacceptable racist and discriminatory remarks made against players of the France team.”
France had previously beaten Argentina in the last 16 of the 2018 World Cup.
