Six Argentina players could be banned for the 2030 World Cup following a statement made by FIFA, according to reports.

Argentina’s players caused controversy with their behaviour on the pitch during this summer’s tournament. After their victory over England in the semi-final, Argentina’s players held up a political banner which read ‘Las Malvinas son Argentinas’, which translates to ‘The Falklands are Argentine.’

In the final, some of Argentina’s players completely lost their heads after their extra-time defeat to Spain. Full-back Nahuel Molina struck Rodri as he ran past him during the celebrations, while Lenadro Paredes grabbed the throat of Spain defender Eric Garcia and then sent Gavi to the ground.

FIFA Open Disciplinary Proceedings Against Argentina

Reuters/James Lang

FIFA have now opened disciplinary proceedings against the Argentinian Football Association. Their statement read: “The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has opened proceedings against the Argentinian Football Association for potential breaches of article 13 paragraph 2 c) (Using a sports event for demonstrations of a non-sporting nature), article 14 paragraph 5 (Team misconduct), article 15 (Discrimination and racist abuse) and article 17 (Order and security at matches) of the FIFA Disciplinary Code in light of discriminatory chants and gestures, late kick-offs, failure to comply with match and security protocols, the display of inappropriate messages by the team and spectators and the throwing of objects by spectators in relation to several matches of the representative team of Argentina at the FIFA World Cup 2026.“

They have also opened disciplinary proceedings against three Argentina players: Molina, Paredes and Thiago Almada.

The statement continued: “The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has received the report of the appointed Disciplinary and Ethics Prosecutor concerning incidents that occurred during the FIFA World Cup 2026 final (Spain v. Argentina) and, following the recommendation contained therein, has opened disciplinary proceedings – for potential breaches of article 14 paragraph 1 i) of the FIFA Disciplinary Code (assault) – against Argentinian players Nahuel Molina (two counts, one completed and one attempted) and Leandro Paredes (three counts) and Argentinian official Roberto Ayala (one count).

“Disciplinary proceedings have also been opened – for potential breaches of article 14 paragraph 1 b) of the FIFA Disciplinary Code (unsporting behaviour) – against Argentinian players Nahuel Molina (one count) and Thiago Almada (one count) and Spanish player Pablo Martín Páez Gavira (one count).”

Six Argentina Players at Risk of 2030 World Cup Ban

REUTERS/Mike Segar

The Sun have now reported that six Argentina players could be banned for the 2030 World Cup.

They write that FIFA have the power to issue a ban to the Argentina players who were involved in the Falklands banner and the violence after the final.

Cristian Romero, Lisandro Martinez and Giovani Lo Celso were all seen holding the Falklands banner and could be punished. While Molina, Paredes and Almada are in hot water following their actions in the final.

Argentina’s next FIFA match will come at the 2030 World Cup. La Albiceleste will host one match at the tournament in honour of the 100th anniversary of the first edition in 1930.

Because they are co-hosting, they will not have to go through qualifying. So, if suspensions are handed out, the next available match for players to be banned could be Argentina’s opening match of the 2030 World Cup.

Fans of Ilia Topuria have been left in shock after seeing the recovery of his face several weeks after his first professional loss to Justin Gaethje.

The Georgian fighter was defeated by The Highlight after he was stopped in his corner just after round four with his face looking worse for wear in the main event of UFC Freedom 250, held at the White House, which saw United States President Donald Trump sit cageside to watch all the action.

On the night, Ciryl Gane defeated Alex Pereira in the co-main event, Sean O’Malley knocked out Aiemann Zahabi, and Josh Hokit beat Derrick Lewis by TKO.

It was understood that Topuria had suffered multiple facial injuries during the fight, with doctors revealing that he had fractured two orbital bones and broke his nose after his brutal match-up with the former BMF winner, who demolished El Matador’s face on his way to championship glory.

Ilia Topuria’s Face Seven Weeks After UFC Freedom 250

Credit: Zuffa LLC

Now, it looks as if Topuria has made a swift recovery, with the former featherweight champion not looking back as he has reportedly been vacationing in Alicante and Ibiza, as photos from the trip have been released.

In the photo, Topuria can be seen smiling with his barber Luis Bless, who shared the photo on his Instagram page, with many fans left impressed with the healing process that the 17-1 fighter has been through.

Fans were quick to take to social media to praise Topuria for this quick recovery, with El Matador’s fans excited to see him in the Octagon once again.

One user on X wrote, “Oh yeah HE LOOKS GREAT! When we getting a comeback match bruh?” while another wrote, “The rematch with Justin Gaethje will be legendary,” as fans look forward to a potential second clash between the two UFC lightweight giants.

Another fan compared El Matador to a famous Marvel superhero by jokingly stating, “Damn, Ilia got those Captain America healing powers, looking good champ!”

Many fans, however, expected Topuria to have made such a recovery in time, with one fan on X commenting, “It’s been over a month since he last fought. I’d hope he’d be healed up by now,” while another commented, “Why is everyone obsessing with his eyes? Yeah, he got beat up. He’s also 29 years old. He will heal quickly. He didn’t tear an ACL or Achilles.”

One thing is for sure that Topuria is vying to get back into the Octagon, with the lightweight division stacked with talent, including champion Gaethje, Arman Tsarukyan, Paddy Pimblett, Charles Oliveira, and Max Holloway.

West Ham United are now closing in on a deal to sign Celtic star Arne Engels, according to Italian journalist Matteo Moretto.

West Ham are looking to secure an immediate return to the Premier League after a disappointing relegation to the Championship, and it has been a positive summer overall.

Nuno Espirito Santo confirmed he is staying to lead the club back to the top flight, with captain Jarrod Bowen doing the same despite inevitable links for the England international to remain in the Premier League.

Incoming business has been quiet so far, but the club has recouped more than £140m through the double sale of Mateus Fernandes to Tottenham Hotspur, and Crysencio Summerville to Al-Hilal.

Now they have brought in some big money to help with the costs of suffering relegation, they can start to look towards adding new faces to boost a squad that is already one of the favourites to win the league next season.

It appears as though they could now be closing in on a huge transfer coup for a Championship club, in Celtic star Engels.

West Ham ‘Close’ to Signing Celtic Star Arne Engels

According to Moretto, posting on X on Friday morning, West Ham are now closing in on the signing of Celtic midfielder Arne Engels.

The exit of Fernandes for £85m shows what a good player he is, and was for West Ham last season, and the need for him to be replaced.

Engels certainly fits the bill as a strong replacement for the Portugal international, given he is a central midfielder who has an impressive goal contribution record from his time at Parkhead.

The Belgium international joined the Hoops for a then club-record fee in 2024, and has since gone on to score 17 goals and register a further 21 assists in 98 appearances for the Glasgow giants.

Engels is Huge Transfer Coup for West Ham

via Reuters

While no fee has been reported by Moretto yet, you would think that Celtic would want to make a profit on a player they signed for a club-record fee of £11m.

Indeed, it was less than six months ago that the Bhoys rejected an offer worth £25m from Nottingham Forest for the Belgian, showing just how highly they rate the 22-year-old star.

One report from Italy claimed that AS Roma had been quoted £26m if they wanted to bring Engels to Serie A.

Whether West Ham would be willing to go that high as a Championship club is unclear, but it is a real signal of intent that they are determined to return to the Premier League at the first time of asking, in what is likely to be a competitive Championship in the 2026-27 season.