Argentina declares 15 July 'National Football Teams Day' after World Cup semi win over England

The Argentine Football Association has announced that 15 July will be observed as 'National Football Teams Day' to commemorate Argentina's 2-1 victory over England in the 2026 World Cup semi-final in Atlanta on 15 July.

England, chasing a first World Cup final since 1966, had taken the lead when Anthony Gordon scored in the 55th minute, but Argentina scored in the 85th and 92nd minutes to overturn the deficit and secure a 2-1 win; the source report said this came with "Thomas Tuchel's side sitting deep".

The result revived memories of Argentina's previous high-profile World Cup meeting with England, the controversial quarter-final win at the 1986 tournament, which occurred 40 years earlier.

Political tensions escalated after the match when some Argentina players celebrated while holding a banner reading "Las Malvinas son Argentinas", which translates as "The Falklands are Argentine".

The Falkland Islands are described in the report as a British Overseas Territory in the south-west Atlantic Ocean and the subject of a sovereignty dispute; Argentina, then ruled by a military junta led by General Leopoldo Galtieri, invaded the islands in 1982.

The 1982 conflict is reported to have lasted 74 days between April and June 1982 and to have resulted in the deaths of 655 Argentine and 255 British servicemen, with three island residents also killed.

The article notes that in a 2013 referendum 99.8% of Falkland Islanders voted to remain a UK territory, and adds that Argentina subsequently lost 1-0 to Spain in the 2026 final while England defeated France 6-4 to take third place.