BUENOS AIRES, November 22, 2023 - Argentina’s resounding victory at Maracaná marked the first time that Brazil lost a World Cup Qualifier at home. Sadly, it was not the first time, nor it will be the last, that Argentinian fans are targeted and subject of police brutality while visiting Brazil. 

The battle of Maracaná should have only taken place on the pitch, in a fierce game that had 42 fouls, players squaring-up and so much tension. Yet the real battle of Maracaná was for Argentinian fans that were battered by military police, using their batons without remorse and bragging about it. 

BATONS AND BLOOD The spark happened during the national anthems (why do we still have national anthems in football?) and quickly escalated from a two-people argument over a flag into a major action by the police, that advanced using their batons not to cordon the zone, but to attack directly and without justification, to the fans that retreated and claimed for mercy. 

The lack of organisation was evident: Argentinian and Brazilian fans were not previously or properly split, and the smallest problem could create mayhem, as it was the case. Even with many Brazilian fans trying to intervene and to calm things down, police officers were blinded by rage and kept hitting heads as if they were watermelons. A mother with his kid jumped to the pitch. Others, not just kids but adults, were crying in fear.

GUNS AND MEMORIES The players that were warming up on the pitch, quickly noticed the situation. And, with captain Messi leading the pack, they approached. 

It was a dangerous, risky but brave move, if anyone remembers that Copa Sudamericana final in 2012 was abandoned by Tigre after their players were threatened with guns by private security. When Argentina’s goalkeeper Emi Martinez jumped to try to stop one police officer from using his baton, the Copa Libertadores atmosphere had definitely taken over. Famous pitch battles took place for far less, players assaulted, arrested. 

The last time Argentina visited Brazil, the game in Sao Paulo was abandoned after armed men and government employees interrupted the game, stating that the players coming from England had dodged the quarantine rules. Argentina team barricaded in their bus overnight to prevent players from being arrested, and after diplomatic negotiations, they were allowed to leave. FIFA delayed the decision -no points deduction to any of the teams- until it was clear that both teams had qualified for the World Cup in Qatar. That night, Argentina proved that they acted as a team.

COUNTLESS VICTIMS Police brutality has been a constant of the past decade in club football, regardless of the political sign that ruled Brazil. It happened under Lula da Silva and also under Jair Bolsonaro. It happened in Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, Belo Horizonte and Porto Alegre. In August, the fans of Argentinos Juniors were attacked by the police in very similar scenes, but were just broadcast as an anecdote of the game. 

In the Copa Libertadores final, this month, the same happened outside the stadium to Boca Juniors fans that were holding their tickets and carrying kids on their shoulders. 

SELFIES WITH X-RAYS One of the fans yesterday was taken on a stretcher, unconscious, his head surrounded by a pool of blood. He woke up handcuffed and, while he was being assisted, he saw the police taking selfies with the X-rays of the fans (one suffered a broken arm) and with the other arrested. “They were using us as war trophies,” he said. Conmebol has not made any remarks, as it is the norm. 
 

THE IMPORTANCE OF JOURNALISM Yesterday, once again, the world champions showed signs of the intense bond that exceed tactics and match performances. And even if their intervention proved to be worthless, it gave visibility to the scenes that quickly went viral, thanks to the work of the photographers and especially the TV journalists that were filming with their phones.

When things kept escalating badly, Messi made the gesture. “We’re out”. And the team returned to the dressing room. Was it a match abandonment? No, the captain would later explain. “Many players had family members and friends there, and when we understood that we couldn’t do anything for them, we left to calm things down,” he said in the flash interview after the game. “Great victory at Maracaná, even it will be forever tarnished by the repression to the Argentinians, once again, in Brazil. This can no longer be tolerated, it’s madness and has to end now,” he posted on his Instagram account, with more than 9 million likes in the first 12 hours. 

Messi had to be replaced for a muscle injury that, he explained, probably happened for the delayed kick-off. It was the second time in one week in which he was seen grabbing an opponent by the neck. He is no longer the shy boy that accepted high kicks and scything tackles and harsh words without reaction. “Why are we cowards, if we are the world champions?,” he said to Rodrygo, that was quickly taken away by captain Marquinhos, former team-mate of Messi at PSG. 

SCALONI OUT? The tension continued in the press conference, with an unexpected bomb coming from the Argentinian side, as manager Lionel Scaloni hinted that he might resign or, at least, he had plenty of things to reflect. “We’ve set the bar too high, and Argentina need a manager that is fully focused. I just wanted to share this. Thanks,” he said before storming off. Last week, in a heated political campaign before the national elections, he had already answered in a very no-nonsense way after being asked about the role of the private sector in football, as one of the candidates, Javier Milei, had mentioned. The AFA president has close ties with the other candidate, Sergio Massa, and a mere suggestion to publicly support him could have been the straw that broke the camel’s back. But unpaid World Cup winning prizes for him and his staff, 11 months after Argentina’s coronation, are probably the core of his anger. The atmosphere at Maracaná stadium clearly did not contribute to a peaceful state of mind.

CANDLES FOR CARLO The football crisis of Brazil can and will be solved. It is the first time that they lose three qualifiers in a row, four games without winning, their first defeat ever at home since the creation of the qualifiers, having a part-time manager (that is also the manager of Fluminense, recently Copa Libertadores champions) until they wait for Carlo Ancelotti and the injured stars. Now, international football stops in South America and will only resume after the Copa America next year, in the United States. 

Nine and half months from now, the battle of Maracaná will probably be forgotten. Until the next time it happens again, that is.  

Police brutality (or police lack of intervention during ambushes to away fans) can only be stopped with visibility, from players and journalists alike. The action of Messi and his team-mates yesterday, should be remembered as a victory in that quest for a peaceful environment and a family-oriented football.