New Delhi: The defending World Champions Argentina were set to face the five-times champion Brazil in the CONMEBOL FIFA 2026 World Cup Qualifiers on Wednesday morning, in an attempt to win their first ever CONMEBOL World Cup Qualifiers match on Brazilian soil.
However, the match which was highly anticipated by the fans for its footballing calibre, is now making headlines due to some unwanted drama, that unfolded in the stands before the match.
The match was scheduled to kick off at 6:00 a.m. IST, but while the two teams were taking their positions for the national anthem, the camera shifted towards the stands, where an all-out brawl was on display between the Brazilian and Argentinian fans.
The fight took an ugly turn when the local police force of Brazil decided to open a Lathi Charge against the Argentinian fans, which upset the visiting side’s captain Lionel Messi.
Messi, who was clearly not happy with the treatment of the Brazilian police towards Argentinian fans, after having a deep discussion with the match officials, asked his teammates to get back into the tunnel as a sign of protest against the excessive use of force by the Brazilian police.
After much deliberation Messi and the team finally walked out to play the game, delaying the start by 30 minutes.
Before the walkout, the Argentinian goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez even tried to get into the stands to confront one of the Brazilian police officers.
Check out the video below:
Brazilian Police attacking Argentina Fans pic.twitter.com/PGIjo8VK83
— New Sheriff⚓ (@NewsheriffUtd) November 22, 2023
Netizens react
Netizens took on X (Formerly known as Twitter), to give their take on the unfortunate events from the stadium.
Lionel Messi told his players to return to the dressing room when he saw how Argentina fans were getting butchered by the Brazilian police before the match, but that’s a coward’s behavior according to this du’mb Rodrygo. pic.twitter.com/c4l2LHlQKf
— Trig (@Kharlerh) November 22, 2023
A fight has erupted at Brazil vs Argentina…!pic.twitter.com/IFVajYoZgw
— 👑155A (limited) (@issa_umar54500) November 22, 2023
These are crazy scenes 😳
Fights are getting out of control before the start of this Argentina vs Brazil gamepic.twitter.com/P79NAj0gWJ— CONTEXTUAL MEME (@Contextual_Meme) November 22, 2023
Lionel Messi and the Argentina national team.pic.twitter.com/Le9oJsZ61Y
— Roy Nemer (@RoyNemer) November 22, 2023
These are crazy scenes 😳
Fights are getting out of control before the start of this Argentina vs Brazil gamepic.twitter.com/GkIHdQ1CSW— CONTEXTUAL MEME (@Contextual_Meme) November 22, 2023
Messi joining the celebrations in the same area the brutal Brazilian police attacked fans.
pic.twitter.com/8QU49fTQoQ— Vamos Argentina (@ArgentinaENFan) November 22, 2023
Usual Brazil vs. Argentina chaos in Brazil. Police beat up Argentine fans, and their players walked off the ground. Argentina eventually defeated Brazil 1 – 0.pic.twitter.com/FXW5iUwZxl
— Keh Ke Peheno (@coolfunnytshirt) November 22, 2023
Argentina players celebrate with the fans who were attached by the police during kickoff! pic.twitter.com/zwZ08B8Wyy
— Leo Messi 🔟 Fan Club (@WeAreMessi) November 22, 2023
Calmness amongst chaos
Between all the chaos that happened before the match in the stands, and Brazilian forward Rodrygo’s ‘Coward’ remarks, towards Messi, the Argentinian defender gave his team a reason to smile when he scored the first and only goal of the match in the 63rd minute, by heading Giovani Lo Celso’s cross from the corner, straight past Brazilian goalkeeper Alisson.
The moment Argentina announced victory in the Maracanapic.twitter.com/vTWaNXNN2d
— Leo Messi (@Messi_10_30) November 22, 2023
With this win, Argentina has finally broken their World Cup qualifiers losing streak on Brazilian soil and also jumped back to the top of the table with 15 points in 6 matches.
On the other hand, the five-time champion Brazil has now slipped to 6th position with just 7 points in 6 matches.