Tapia tells Argentines to drop the conspiracy theories: 'Spain were better, they beat us fair and square'
The AFA president breaks his silence after the World Cup final defeat and urges Argentines to stop the conspiracy theories surrounding Spain's victory.
The World Cup final left an open wound in Argentina — and, instead of grief, theories were born. The FBI, threats to family members, outside pressure. Everything was invoked to explain what happened on the pitch. But AFA president Chiqui Tapia decided to put the matter to rest.
In a post on social media, Tapia was blunt: "Don't let yourselves be taken in by lies. They were better than us, they beat us fair and square." The message is simple, but its weight is enormous — coming from someone who had himself been named in the conspiracy theories as a person detained by the FBI.
Before him, Scaloni and Ayala had already acknowledged Spain's superiority and dismissed the far-fetched explanations that swept the country, according to Marca. Tapia followed the same path: "There was no matching Spain. They won convincingly and we have to know how to recognise that. In sport you also learn by accepting defeats with the same grace with which you celebrate victories."
Spain, it should be said, reached the final as one of the most consistent sides in the tournament. Golmetria's model had already identified the team as a title favourite before the knockout rounds, giving them an 18.55% chance of being champions — and the market saw a similar probability, around 15.8%.
Argentina lost a final. But Tapia reminded everyone that the squad had brought the country enormous joy before that point. Acknowledging the defeat does not erase the journey — and perhaps that is the first step toward rebuilding.
Now, the question hanging in the air: can Argentina turn the page and start thinking about the next cycle?