Argentina fans accused of violence, racism by Egypt, Cape Verde supporters

Fans tell Al Jazeera Argentina supporters hurled beer bottles and abuse at them when their team scored in knockout games.Sections of Egyptian and Cape Verdean fans have accused their Argentinian counterparts of violent behaviour during the past two matches played by the reigning champions at the World Cup.The accusations, coupled with at least one high-profile allegation of racism, have brought new scrutiny to Argentina’s title defence, after two closely fought knockout matches in which lower-ranked opponents nearly embarrassed Lionel Messi’s side.On Tuesday, Egypt led Argentina 2-0 in Atlanta before Messi’s side staged a stunning late comeback to advance to the quarterfinals.Their fans reacted to the team’s poor start and eventual turnaround by attacking their Egyptian counterparts in ugly scenes filmed by a spectator at Atlanta-stadium" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="139708" data-entity-type="location">Atlanta Stadium. Supporters of the Albiceleste were filmed throwing beer on Egypt’s fans after the world champions equalised against the Pharaohs in the closing stages of the round-of-16 encounter.“They’re throwing beer at us,” said a fan who filmed the incident at Atlanta-stadium" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="139708" data-entity-type="location">Atlanta Stadium on Tuesday.“When we scored, we did nothing to them. After they scored, they started attacking us,” he added before panning the camera towards Argentinian fans provoking Egypt’s supporters.Several videos and photos posted by fans at the stadium also showed the Argentinians waving the Israeli flag towards the Egyptian coaching staff as they exited the field after the match.Egypt’s head coach Hossam Hassan has spoken passionately about the plight of the Palestinian people, especially those in Gaza, where Israel has waged a genocidal war since October 2023.