FIFA’s stance over replaying Argentina and Spain’s World Cup final has been revealed after a petition reached nearly 100,000 signatures.

Lionel Messi and La Albiceleste suffered a 1-0 defeat to La Roja at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey on July 19th. Ferran Torres’ extra-time winner meant the reigning European champions became two-time world champions.

Controversy ensued throughout a tense battle as Enzo Fernandez received a red card for two reckless bookings. Several refereeing decisions upset Argentine players and supporters.

So much so, a post-match brawl unfolded when Argentine midfielder Leandro Paredes threw punches at Spain’s Gavi. Other incidents also took place as the South American nation reacted furiously to their loss.

How FIFA Will Respond to World Cup Final Petition

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An Argentine fan, Gisela Sanchez, has since created a petition on Change.org asking FIFA to replay the World Cup final. As of Friday morning, it sits at 95,710 signatures, with those signing in agreement with Sanchez’s issues about Slovakian referee Slavko Vincic.

Sanchez claimed that several decisions Vincic and his officiating team made impacted the outcome of the final. She wants FIFA to review incidents and irregularities, claiming ‘this isn’t just a matter of justice for Argentina, but for the future of world football.”

The chances of FIFA deciding to replay the final are all but certainly ruled out because petitions on platforms such as Change.org have no legal or regulatory authority over FIFA competitions. Despite the tens of thousands who took issue with Vincic and his team, a World Cup result can’t be overturned because fans are unhappy with refereeing decisions.

Only under “extraordinary circumstances” would a replay be required, and football governing bodies usually only consider replays in rare cases involving specific rule violations. Even if the petition reaches hundreds of thousands of signatures, it will have no legal or binding effect on the result.

Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni refused to blame Vincic for his team’s defeat and insisted that Spain were the better team on the day. His and Messi’s futures are in doubt and Nicolas Otamendi has announced his international retirement.

‘Argentina Out’ Petition Makes History

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This isn’t the only petition to have been created in the aftermath of a controversial World Cup and final. Another one has demanded that Spain be permanently banned from future global tournaments and this has been much more popular.

A website called ‘Argentina Out‘ included said petition and has been signed by over 23 million people from 170 countries in under a week. The creator wrote: “FIFA ignored us but Spain delivered. Thank you Spain.”

While it has now been closed, it nearly achieved the Guinness World Record for the most signed petition in history. The current record of 24,319,181 signatures from 166 countries is held by ‘Jubilee 200 ‘, which was a campaign launched in 1997 calling for unbearable debts to be cancelled in the poorest countries.

Argentina were villainised during the World Cup campaign with rival fans believing they were handed preferential treatment. The actions of some of their players upset other nations, including England’s Jude Bellingham, who took issue with Valentin Barco after a semi-final defeat.

The World Cup final defeat to Spain proved to be the final act of one of Argentina‘s players, who has now announced their international retirement.

La Albiceleste surrendered their world title crown after suffering a loss in extra time during a controversial final at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on July 19th. Ferran Torres scored a 106th-minute winner to break Argentine hearts.

Lionel Messi was in tears after the game, with speculation growing over the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner’s future with his national team. His manager, Lionel Scaloni, has also hinted that he may leave his role, and one of the old guard has already confirmed their time is up.

Argentina Hero Announces Retirement

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Argentina were deservedly beaten in a feisty affair which saw Enzo Fernandez sent off for two reckless bookable offenses. They were looking to win the tournament for a second consecutive time after becoming world champions in Qatar in 2022.

Nicolas Otamendi came on in the first half after Lisandro Martinez sustained a thigh injury and this was his final appearance. The former Manchester City centre-back released an emotional statement on his Instagram account:

“Today I have to write the most difficult words of my career. As fate would have it, ​my last match was a World Cup final. It wasn’t ‌the ⁠result we wanted, but I’m leaving with my head held high, knowing that this team gave it their all right up ​to the very ​last second.”

He added: “Thank ⁠you, Argentina, for allowing me to fulfil the dream of becoming ​a world champion.”

Otamendi, 38, earned his 139th international cap in the defeat to Spain, having been handed his debut by Diego Maradona back in May 2009. He has won the World Cup and two Copa America titles but played a bit-part role in this summer’s tournament.

This was his fourth World Cup campaign but while he’s now finished representing La Albiceleste his club career continues. He recently joined Argentine club River Plate after spending 16 years in Europe which included a five-year spell at City.

Is Lionel Messi Also Retiring?

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The question on everybody’s lips is whether Messi will also call time on his international career after missing out on back-to-back World Cup glory. He once again starred for Argentina, registering eight goals and four assists.

At 39, it was almost certainly the Inter Miami forward’s final World Cup campaign, and his emotional reaction after the defeat suggested he might have played his last game for his country. beIN SPORTS relay reports in Argentina claim that the Barcelona icon isn’t quite finished just yet.

The plan is reportedly for Messi to continue playing for the next few months before retiring from international football. A special match is believed to be on the cards to allow fans to bid farewell to their hero and give him a proper send-off at an event in his homeland.

Scaloni downplayed suggestions of a rift with Messi after his captain’s half-time speech was put to him. The player told his teammates to ‘calm down’ and ‘forget everything ‘, which some are asserting was an assessment of the manager’s pragmatic game plan.

Messi posted a statement on Instagram after the defeat to Spain about the “immense pain” of losing the final. He thanked the fans and said he was proud to have once again united as a country and made it to two World Cup finals in a row.