FIFA World Cup 2026

[gourd2]

why focus so much on ethnicity though? it's not a competition between ethnic groups but between nationalities. and if in a nation many of the best players are not ethnically multigenerational locals then that's how it is. would be weird to tell them they can't play because of their origin.

and perhaps football players tend to be of migrant background because it is a big gamble to try a football career. it's people from low income groups who try, they don't have much to lose.

 

[Maciamo]

why focus so much on ethnicity though? it's not a competition between ethnic groups but between nationalities. and if in a nation many of the best players are not ethnically multigenerational locals then that's how it is. would be weird to tell them they can't play because of their origin.

and perhaps football players tend to be of migrant background because it is a big gamble to try a football career. it's people from low income groups who try, they don't have much to lose.

The issue is not so much ethnicity as whether the players actually feel like citizens of the country they represent. When you have a second generation immigrant from Africa, whose parents immigrated to say France with their native language and culture, and that they passed on their language, culture, traditions and even sometimes sense of belonging to their children, they may only be playing for the French team because they are physically in France and were born there, but not because they feel intrinsically French at heart. It's even worse if a famous player was naturalised just so that he could play for a particular country's team. Then that player, as Vallicanus put it, is just a mercenary.

Such mercenaries only play for money. This makes them less motivated in a World Cup setting, as they don't play for their country's honour/glory. In the European Championship, if they play for a particular city, they are more motivated to play well as they can get a better offer from another team. The World Cup is a one-time thing once every four years, and better players are not rewarded with higher salaries. That may be why teams with a lot of such mercenaries, like the Netherlands, did not perform well at the World Cup.

It would probably be better to set a minimum number of generations in a country for someone to be considered a native. I would say at least three generations unless one of the parents is already native.

However, there are two problems with that.

1. Does that mean that recent immigrants cannot play for any country or must they play for their parents' country of origin, even if they weren't born there and have never been there?

2. The rules must be harmonized for every countries. Imagine if France were to decide that players need to have at least three generations of ancestry in France to play for the French team, but Germany says that anybody can play for them, then all the best players who don't qualify for the French team will move to Germany (or somewhere else).

 

[gourd2]

The issue is not so much ethnicity as whether the players actually feel like citizens of the country they represent. When you have a second generation immigrant from Africa, whose parents immigrated to say France with their native language and culture, and that they passed on their language, culture, traditions and even sometimes sense of belonging to their children, they may only be playing for the French team because they are physically in France and were born there, but not because they feel intrinsically French at heart. It's even worse if a famous player was naturalised just so that he could play for a particular country's team. Then that player, as Vallicanus put it, is just a mercenary.

Such mercenaries only play for money. This makes them less motivated in a World Cup setting, as they don't play for their country's honour/glory.

first generation immigrants can already have more pride than second or third generation or people with no migrant background though. while people whose ancestors live in the country for multiple generations still might play for personal gains rather than the countries glory. and since this is just a sports tournament, it shouldn't be taken too serious imo. if FIFA implemented such requirements the whole things becomes unnecessarily loaded.

you might also run into the situation that certain countries, particularly smaller ones, have no good players at all or that many good players can not play in any team.

In the European Championship, if they play for a particular city, they are more motivated to play well as they can get a better offer from another team. The World Cup is a one-time thing once every four years, and better players are not rewarded with higher salaries. That may be why teams with a lot of such mercenaries, like the Netherlands, did not perform well at the World Cup.

scouts are looking at world cup games the same way as on club games though. players that perform well in the world cup games will certainly get the attention of scouts too and perhaps get proposals. look at the swiss player Manzambi. he got a contract with aston villa after the world cup. or the moroccan player Saibari who was contracted by Bayern Munich.

That may be why teams with a lot of such mercenaries, like the Netherlands, did not perform well at the World Cup.

it's difficult to say if they performed bad because of their diverse origin or because the opponent team was good, or the football in netherlands generally isn't that good.

do you think that a team with only at least third generation netherlandic players would have performed better?

they might have. could also be that they would not even have qualified. there are plenty of european teams who did not qualify even with much less players with migrant background so it's no guarantee that players play better.

 

[kingdavid]

for me to look at the french national team and see only 2 white French players in the squad ( rabiot and digne)
was disturbing
it is not politically correct but i will say it either way
i am sure some other people here in this forum feel the same
in that aspect national teams like : Spain , Argentina , Norway got my respect
but hey that's just my opinion

 

[HereToLearn]

first generation immigrants can already have more pride than second or third generation or people with no migrant background though.

Theoretically possible I suppose, but in my quite extensive experience that would be a first.

 

[Duarte]

for me to look at the french national team and see only 2 white French players in the squad ( rabiot and digne)
was disturbing
it is not politically correct but i will say it either way
i am sure some other people here in this forum feel the same
in that aspect national teams like : Spain , Argentina , Norway got my respect
but hey that's just my opinion

As for Argentina—a Latin American country—I assume you are referring to the fact that all the national team players were born in Argentina, rather than to any supposed ethnic uniformity (like that associated with Norwegians or Spaniards) or the absence of white players on the French national team—which supposedly fails to reflect the true ethnic makeup of the French people.

There has been extensive racial mixing across all Latin American countries, and Argentina is no exception.

There is certainly no shortage of internet memes poking fun at the "European" character of Argentines. They genuinely believe they "came off the boats," that Mexicans descended from the Aztecs and Mayans, and that Brazilians came out of the jungle (Brazilian and African savages, right?).

As it turns out, genetic studies reveal a picture quite different from the one Argentines believe to be true:

An Argentine fan mimics a monkey to mock the American influencer IShowSpeed during the match between Argentina and Egypt. That Argentine must be a true Scandinavian:

How Argentines think they are and how they really are:

 

[HereToLearn]

How Argentines think they are and how they really are:

View attachment 19963

TBH Messi to me looks 100% European, not even in the dark part of the Southern European spectrum. I see your general point but on the other hand the Argentines don't claim they "came off the Scandinavian LONGboats"

 

[kingdavid]

As for Argentina—a Latin American country—I assume you are referring to the fact that all the national team players were born in Argentina, rather than to any supposed ethnic uniformity (like that associated with Norwegians or Spaniards) or the absence of white players on the French national team—which supposedly fails to reflect the true ethnic makeup of the French people.

There has been extensive racial mixing across all Latin American countries, and Argentina is no exception.

There is certainly no shortage of internet memes poking fun at the "European" character of Argentines. They genuinely believe they "came off the boats," that Mexicans descended from the Aztecs and Mayans, and that Brazilians came out of the jungle (Brazilian and African savages, right?).

As it turns out, genetic studies reveal a picture quite different from the one Argentines believe to be true:

View attachment 19961

An Argentine fan mimics a monkey at IShowSpeed during the match between Argentina and Egypt. That Argentine must be a true Scandinavian:

View attachment 19962

How Argentines think they are and how they really are:

View attachment 19963

View attachment 19964

View attachment 19965

yes

 

[Duarte]

TBH Messi to me looks 100% European, not even in the dark part of the Southern European spectrum. I see your general point but on the other hand the Argentines don't claim they "came off the Scandinavian LONGboats"

No, they do not claim to have arrived on Viking ships. They maintain that all Argentines arrived on European ships from Europe to build a life in the Americas, and that this sets them apart from other Latin Americans—the latter being descended from the region's original inhabitants (Amerindians) and having also intermixed with enslaved Africans. There is absolutely no shame in having Indigenous and/or enslaved African ancestry, yet Argentines use this characteristic to emphasize the superiority of their European ethnicity and culture over the *mestizo* culture of other Latin Americans—acting as if they were 100% ethnically European, when in fact they are not. Messi does indeed possess features typical of the northern Mediterranean, such as fair skin, very straight light-brown hair, and a reddish beard. If he has any Amerindian or African ancestry, it does not manifest in his phenotype, which is typically European. His height of 1.70 meters contributes to his agility and speed, making this perhaps his only distinctive trait that is less "European" (statistically speaking, of course).

 

[Duarte]

To provide context for what I said, before, it is worth referring to a statement made by the former Argentine president Alberto Fernandez (left-wing, not right-wing like Milei) during the state visit undertaken by a Spanish government delegation to Argentina in 2021.

In June 2021, former Argentine President Alberto Fernández stated that "Mexicans came from the Indians, Brazilians came out of the jungle, but we, the Argentines, arrived on boats that came from Europe."

The statement was made at the Casa Rosada during an official meeting with the Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sánchez.

Below are the details regarding the misquote, the resulting backlash, and the historical context of this stance.

The Misquote and Its Origin

Fernández was attempting to present himself as a "Europeanist" to please the Spanish delegation and claimed to be quoting the Mexican writer Octavio Paz. However, he mixed up his references:

• Octavio Paz's actual quote: The Nobel Prize-winning author originally wrote: "Mexicans descend from the Aztecs, Peruvians from the Incas, and Argentines from the ships."
• Litto Nebbia's song: The phrase uttered by the president actually reflects the lyrics of the song "Llegamos de los barcos" ("We Arrived from the Boats") by Argentine musician Litto Nebbia, of whom Fernández is a fan. The song literally says: "Brazilians come out of the jungle, Mexicans come from the Indians, but we, the Argentines, arrived from the boats."

Backlash and Negative Repercussions

The statement triggered strong diplomatic and social reactions across Latin America, being widely criticized as Eurocentric, biased, and racist.

• Ethnic Invisibility: Critics pointed out that the statement ignores the existence of millions of Indigenous and Afro-descendant people who are an integral part of Argentina's history and current demographics.
• Reaction in Brazil and Mexico: Politicians and social media users from neighboring countries mocked or condemned the declaration, pointing out its xenophobic undertones regarding native and tropical populations.

The Apology

Following the backlash, Fernández took to social media to apologize. He argued that he deeply values his country's diversity and explained that he was referring to the arrival of more than 5 million European immigrants who came to Argentina in the first half of the 20th century and coexisted with native peoples.

 

[kingdavid]

weren't the Argentinian nation
created mainly from the admixture of 2 southern European nations
Iberians ( Spaniards )+ Italians ?
the Italian ancestry also showed in the way Argentina played in the final
they fought like roman lions against a team who was much more talented then them

 

[Degredado]

No, they do not claim to have arrived on Viking ships. They maintain that all Argentines arrived on European ships from Europe to build a life in the Americas, and that this sets them apart from other Latin Americans—the latter being descended from the region's original inhabitants (Amerindians) and having also intermixed with enslaved Africans. There is absolutely no shame in having Indigenous and/or enslaved African ancestry, yet Argentines use this characteristic to emphasize the superiority of their European ethnicity and culture over the *mestizo* culture of other Latin Americans—acting as if they were 100% ethnically European, when in fact they are not. Messi does indeed possess features typical of the northern Mediterranean, such as fair skin, very straight light-brown hair, and a reddish beard. If he has any Amerindian or African ancestry, it does not manifest in his phenotype, which is typically European. His height of 1.70 meters contributes to his agility and speed, making this perhaps his only distinctive trait that is less "European" (statistically speaking, of course).

The idea that Argentina is one of the whitest countries in the world is one of the greatest publicity stunts ever pulled by any country. Hell, many people even believe that most Argentines are descended from Germans who arrived after WW2. To be sure, Buenos Aires definitely has a distinct European feel, as do Bariloche and certain landscapes in Patagonia; but it is also clear, especially outside of Buenos Aires, that most people have some degree of admixture. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that, no matter how they may feel about it.

 

[Duarte]

The idea that Argentina is one of the whitest countries in the world is one of the greatest publicity stunts ever pulled by any country. Hell, many people even believe that most Argentines are descended from Germans who arrived after WW2. To be sure, Buenos Aires definitely has a distinct European feel, as do Bariloche and certain landscapes in Patagonia; but it is also clear, especially outside of Buenos Aires, that most people have some degree of admixture. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that, no matter how they may feel about it.

The three main basic ethnic components of Latin Americans. Comparative average of five countries in the region.

Just a country-wide average. Of course, these values vary significantly by region, province, state, or municipality.

 

[kingdavid]

weren't the Argentinian nation
created mainly from the admixture of 2 southern European nations
Iberians ( Spanish )+ Italians ?
the Italian ancestry also showed in the way Argentina played in the final
they fought like roman lions against a team who was much more talented then them

View attachment 19967

The three main basic ethnic components of Latin Americans. Comparative average of five countries in the region.

Just a country-wide average. Of course, these values vary significantly by region, province, state, or municipality.

i didn't knew the Amerindian element was that huge in Argentina
mind-blowing to be honest
so i guess Argentinians are mainly a mixture of ( Iberians+ Italians+ Amerindians)
i assume the Amerindian element is less high in Buenos- Aires and as you go farther
this element goes up .