Leandro Paredes
Argentina midfielder sent off for confronting Spain's Eric García after the 2026 World Cup final.
Leandro Paredes was sent off for grabbing Spain's Eric García by the neck after Argentina's 1-0 extra-time defeat in the World Cup final on 19 July, an incident now under a FIFA disciplinary review with no finding made.
Last refreshed: 21 July 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic
Why did Leandro Paredes say the Falklands 'will always be Argentine' after beating England?
Timeline for Leandro Paredes
Jabbed Eric García in the throat and shoved Gavi to the ground
2026 FIFA World Cup: FIFA opens prosecutor file on brawlSent off after confronting Eric Garcia and striking Gavi
2026 FIFA World Cup: Torres settles the final in the 106thTold reporters the islands 'will always be Argentine'
2026 FIFA World Cup: Malvinas banner puts AFA on the hookBackground
Paredes is an Argentina international midfielder who won the 2022 World Cup with the national team. He has played for Boca Juniors, Zenit St Petersburg, Paris Saint-Germain and Juventus during his career, and returned to Boca Juniors in 2024.
His standing in the Argentina squad long predates this tournament's controversies, built across a decade of international caps and a World Cup winner's medal that gives his on- and off-field Conduct outsized attention compared with less established teammates.
He had already made the tournament political before the final: after Argentina's semi-final win over England, he told reporters the Falkland Islands 'will always be Argentine' as players posed with a banner reading 'Las Malvinas Son Argentinas', a banner whose own FIFA disciplinary file, against the federation rather than Paredes, remained open past the tournament's 19 July close.
Paredes is sent off after the final
Paredes was dismissed in the chaotic aftermath of Argentina's 1-0 extra-time defeat to Spain on 19 July, shown a straight red card for grabbing Eric García by the neck. Gavi, struck as he moved to intervene, went to ground before Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni pulled the players apart; no injuries were reported. It was Argentina's second dismissal of the match, after Enzo Fernández's 93rd-minute red card for a foul on Pau Cubarsí.
FIFA's Disciplinary and Ethics Prosecutor, appointed the day after the final, is now examining the incident alongside separate scenes involving Roberto Ayala and Nahuel Molina; the review is open, no charge has been laid against Paredes, and no sanction beyond the red card itself has followed.
Reference
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