4 minutes ago, Taboo2 said:

The Argies can try and take it back....no one is stopping them.

They don't want another war.

As hopeless a cause as it is for Argentinians, it is a time honored way to unite all Argentinians (aside from football) with any politics so their politicians will never shut up about it.

11 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

I already noted the importance of that before on this topic.

There indeed is massive arrogance on both sides.

I've seen a difference though.

Argentinians are usually willing to acknowledge the UK narrative.

UK people on the other hand totally dismiss Argentinian claims as out of hand.

Really, do you follow the news?

Have you seen the comments from the Argentinian vice president, the songs their national team sing, their latest antics on the world stage?

Not exactly conciliatory.

I haven’t seen anything similar coming out of the UK apart from the normal jibes by individuals on social media.

What I'm saying is to have some compassion for the feelings of Argentinians on this.

They have not forgotten their war dead who were brutally slaughtered because they had a leader that took them to a war where they had zero chance.

42 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Probably over 99 percent of Argentinians think Las Malvinas Son Argentinas..

The arrogance of the UK side thinking they're all crazy or wrong.

A YouGov poll in 2024 found that 57% of the UK believe that the Falklands should remain British. (I suspect that this figure would be significantly higher at this moment).

The arrogance of the Argentine side thinking that the majority of Brits are wrong.

50 minutes ago, Hummin said:

The more fuss about it, the less sympathy for England. The only ones who win from this are Argentina. The rest of the world does not care, only England.

That may well be true and whilst it would be extremely naive to think that sports and politics can be separated, nevertheless, nearly every major sports governing body - including FIFA - has rules in place prohibiting individuals and teams from using events to make political statements.

Therefore, FIFA has a choice. Either erase that rule or punish the Argentina players - either individually or collectively - for breaking it.

43 minutes ago, Taboo2 said:

The Argies can try and take it back....no one is stopping them.

By all accounts the British navy would still be using the same ships.

6 minutes ago, RayC said:

That may well be true and whilst it would be extremely naive to think that sports and politics can be separated, nevertheless, nearly every major sports governing body - including FIFA - has rules in place prohibiting individuals and teams from using events to make political statements.

Politics

Therefore, FIFA has a choice. Either erase that rule or punish the Argentina players - either individually or collectively - for breaking it.

A complicated matter, especially when the 3,500 locals on these remote islands do not want to be part of Argentina. And to be fair, they are about 500 km from the Argentine mainland. So I agree: the World Cup should not be used as an arena for political propaganda.

Still, my main point is that this is a battle the UK will not win in the world’s eyes.

1 minute ago, Hummin said:

A complicated matter, especially when the 3,500 locals on these remote islands do not want to be part of Argentina. And to be fair, they are about 500 km from the Argentine mainland. So I agree: the World Cup should not be used as an arena for political propaganda.

Still, my main point is that this is a battle the UK will not win in the world’s eyes.

I'd imagine that the majority of the world's population - outside of the UK and Argentina - wouldn't have even known of the Falklands existence before this WC started, and don't care one way or the other about its' sovereignity.

17 minutes ago, Packer said:

By all accounts the British navy would still be using the same ships.

I was about to reply with a laughing emoji, but your statement is probably true and it isn't a laughing matter.

51 minutes ago, Taboo2 said:

The Argies can try and take it back....no one is stopping them.

Last time there were only 68 Royal Marines not equipped for an invasion to stop them.

Now they would be facing a garrison of 1,200 to 2,000 troops, Typhoon fighter jets, and Sky Sabre surface-to-air missile systems plus the odd sub patrolling the seas surrounding the Falklands. It would basically be a suicide mission for them to even try

4 minutes ago, RayC said:

I was about to reply with a laughing emoji, but your statement is probably true and it isn't a laughing matter.

Three frigates HMS Richmond, HMS Iron Duke and HMS Chiddingfold are being decommissioned that leaves the Royal Navy with just 5 frigates and no replacements until at least 2028 at the earliest.

The first three type 26 frigates are expected to enter service before 2030, with the remaining five joining after 2030.

Forget all this.

Time to kick Spain's butt!

58 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Forget all this.

Time to kick Spain's butt!

Kier Starmer was asked who he would be supporting in the final. #10 issued a statement saying, "The PM wishes both teams the best of luck ... especially Spain"😁

7 minutes ago, RayC said:

I'd imagine that the majority of the world's population - outside of the UK and Argentina - wouldn't have even known of the Falklands existence before this WC started, and don't care one way or the other about its' sovereignity.

I can only speak for myself. In Norway, I remember the intense media coverage of the short war in the 80s. I was a teenager then, and at that time had massive sympathy for the UK. I guess the same went for many of Britain’s allies and friends. Prince Andrew was portrayed as a war hero, as I remember, but a lot has changed since then.

And a new conflict can be a perfect distraction, in a world where many things happen at the same time.

8 hours ago, Jingthing said:

There is a lot more to the history than that.

Well, I suppose there is, if you consider that the dormant (and long settled by a treaty) claim was resurrected by Juan Peron, enthusiastic protege of and self appointed South American equivalent of Messrs Hitler, Mussolini and Franco. Peron's regime incidently being the primary destination for fleeing Nazis and their loot in 1945. They were welcomed, and found a purpose if not formal employment as advisors to his regime. That may go some way towards explaining the enthusiasm for resurrecting the claim that the Islands had been stolen by The British.

There is a lot more to the history of that part of the world than was "covered" by Andrew Lloyd Weber in "Evita", although it did have some jolly good tunes!

As another bitter enemy of the British, albeit from a totally different political and geographical sphere, has gone on record as saying "They haven't gone away you know!"

Edited July 17Jul 17 by JAG

5 hours ago, JonnyF said:

The coach is German and made possibly the worst substitutions and tactical moves in the history of the World Cup

that " bloody hun" did it on purpose. exact quote from my mates

Edited July 17Jul 17 by Yagoda

6 hours ago, RayC said:

Kier Starmer was asked who he would be supporting in the final. #10 issued a statement saying, "The PM wishes both teams the best of luck ... especially Spain"😁

9 hours ago, Taboo2 said:

The Argies can try and take it back....no one is stopping them.

That would mean thousands of Falklanders

arriving on Britsh shores , probably by boat!

Not sure how that would go down in the UK?

US threatens Britain over Falklands

Pentagon officials warn UK to boost defence spending or risk losing support for sovereignty over the islands

Say, have you guys tried any of this new Trump Beef?

It's very patriotic tasting. I just ate some for breakfast before my Tango lessons. 🕺