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The Argentina Football Association (AFA) is preparing to pursue legal action against FIFA following the severe penalties soccer's governing body imposed on several of its players on Friday.
FIFA confirmed its ruling to suspend and fine three Argentine players for their involvement in the violent brawl that erupted after the final whistle of the 2026 FIFA World Cup final defeat to Spain. Nahuel Molina was identified as the aggressor, caught striking Spain's star midfielder Rodri on the arm as he sprinted from the bench to join his celebrating teammates. The two engaged in a brief heated exchange before the situation spiraled out of control, ultimately resulting in Argentina's Leandro Paredes grabbing Eric García by the throat and shoving Gavi to the ground.
FIFA issued Paredes a 10-match ban for his part in the ugly incident, while Molina received a seven-match suspension. Both players were additionally fined $90,000. Teammate Thiago Almada was handed a one-match ban. Argentina coach Roberto Ayala—who struck Spanish star midfielder Dani Olmo—has been suspended for three matches, joining Almada in receiving a $30,000 fine.
Andrés Paton Urich, the AFA's legal counsel, described FIFA's punishment as "excessive," and on those grounds, the AFA will lodge an appeal, with the primary aim of reducing the bans handed to Paredes, Molina, and Ayala.
Argentina Plans Legal Action
"We were notified today of the resolutions of the six disciplinary files," Urich said on D Sports Radio. "We are unhappy with the sanctions; we anticipated some would come, but expected them to be lighter. We believe those handed to Paredes, Molina, and Ayala are disproportionate to their actions, so we will seek to have them reduced. We will request the grounds and file an appeal."
The AFA reportedly plans to compile a frame-by-frame analysis of multiple videos from the World Cup altercation to present before the FIFA Appeals Committee, aiming to demonstrate that the players' conduct does not warrant such severe bans. Urich intends to highlight a clear disparity by drawing comparisons to similar incidents in international soccer history and their resulting penalties, including the nine-match ban Uruguayan star Luis Suárez received for biting Italian defender Giorgio Chiellini at the 2014 World Cup.
"We have 10 days to request the grounds, which we will do between today and Monday," Urich said. "Then the deadline begins to run for filing the appeal with all the supporting evidence. Once that's done, the Appeals Committee will issue its decision, which may validate the sanction or modify it. If the Committee upholds the sanctions, we will evaluate going to the [Court of Arbitration for Sport]."
He continued: "The suspension applies to competitions such as the World Cup qualifiers, and that is precisely why we want to challenge this sanction, which we consider unjust and excessive. We will put in every effort to have it overturned."
Urich expressed confidence in securing reduced suspensions for the players, pointing to a comparable case from 2017. "The clearest precedent is Messi's case in the 2018 World Cup qualifiers, where he was initially handed a four-match ban that was subsequently reduced. Naturally, we are opposed to these types of sanctions." Messi had directed verbal abuse at an assistant referee during a March qualifier against Chile.
The AFA was also fined $321,000 by FIFA over fans' use of discriminatory chants and gestures, as well as the players' decision to carry a politically charged banner referencing the Falklands War onto the pitch following their World Cup semifinal win over England. As of Sunday, the AFA has no plans to appeal those particular charges.