Argentina were de-throned as World Cup champions on Sunday, beaten 1-0 by Spain in the final. But that’s not the only title they surrendered after the defeat, as they are also no longer atop the FIFA men’s world rankings.
Shameful post-match scenes ensued on Sunday, which saw Leandro Paredes push Eric Garcia’s throat and wrestle Gavi to the ground. Argentina defender Nahuel Molina also appeared to strike Spanish captain Rodri.
FIFA has since launched a formal investigation, appointing a disciplinary and ethics prosecutor to scrutinise the post-match incidents.
As the nation awaits the verdict, Scaloni’s side have suffered a further setback after being displaced from the top of FIFA’s world rankings. Spain’s newly-crowned status as world champions is now reflected in the latest rankings following the World Cup.
Luis de la Fuente’s men sit at the summit on 1995.88 points, picking up 30.27 ranking points for their World Cup final victory and leapfrogging Argentina, who drop to second on 1970.37. France, England and Brazil round off the top five. Morocco, Portugal, Belgium, the Netherlands and Mexico complete the top 10.
Spain, meanwhile, were crowned two-time world champions and etched their name in the history books with a new all-time world record of 38 international matches unbeaten.
Yet, it has been a turbulent week for Argentina, who are also at the centre of a separate FIFA investigation following their semi-final celebrations against England. A number of Argentine players paraded a banner bearing the words: “Las Malvinas son Argentinas” (“The Falkland Islands are Argentine”).
The banner seemed to violate tournament rules, which forbid the display of political messages or slogans before, during or after fixtures. Argentina went on to produce several other contentious moments following the conclusion of the World Cup final.