ANGER OVER COVERED MAP AT ARGENTINA’S MALVINAS ARGENTINAS STADIUM

Irate Argentine government officials on Wednesday ordered the uncovering of a large map of the Malvinas (Falkland) Islands at a stadium in Mendoza hosting matches of the FIFA Under-20 World Cup.

The map is a permanent feature on the scoreboard at Estadio Malvinas Argentinas, a reference to the islands over which Argentina fought a bloody war with Britain in 1982.

During a U20 football match played at the stadium on Tuesday, officials noticed the map had been covered by FIFA insignia, igniting a flood of condemnation from national officials..

The Foreign Ministry’s Malvinas, Antarctic and South Atlantic Secretariat Secretary Guillermo Carmona issued a statement demanding “explanations” from the Mendoza Province Government and expressing his “firm rejection” of the incident. A Malvinas war veterans body also denounced “an act of betrayal and disrespect” in a note to the Argentine Football Association (AFA).

Hours later, the Mendoza Province government ordered that FIFA banners be removed and the map uncovered, restoring it and an Argentine flag placed at the side of the big screen and electronic scoreboard.

“They have already removed the signage that mentioned the championship (U20WC) and covered up the map of the Malvinas Islands. FIFA’S inadvertent mistake was corrected,” wrote Mendoza Province Governor Rodolfo Suárez (Juntos por el Cambio) on Twitter.

The stadium, around 1,000 kilometres (621 miles) west of Buenos Aires, was built for the 1978 World Cup and initially bore the name of the province. Four years later, shortly after the end of the conflict over the islands, it was renamed to Malvinas Argentinas

Argentina claims the islands off the Patagonian coast as its own, and in 1982 sent soldiers to take the territory. Britain sent nearly 30,000 troops halfway round the world to repel the Argentines.

The war lasted 74 days and left more than 900 dead – 649 Argentine and 255 British soldiers as well as three island inhabitants. britain emerged victorious, but the campaign left a deep wound, despite diplomatic and economic ties recovering since then.

England, also competing in the U20 World Cup, are not expected to play any matches at the stadium.

Several weeks ago, reports emerged that FIFA had asked for the stadium to be renamed Mendoza for purposes of the tournament. The province denied such a request was being considered, branding the accusation as a “big lie.”