Black Argentines, anti-racism activists, and Black expatriates living in Argentina have pushed back against claims of widespread racism that circulated online during the 2026 FIFA World Cup, arguing that the country was cast as the tournament’s “villain” in an increasingly polarized debate.

The backlash reached a peak on Monday when U.S. actor Samuel L. Jackson shared an Instagram post urging Black people not to support Argentina in the World Cup.

“Argentina has historically been one of, if not the most, racist countries in the world. If you are a Black person cheering for Argentina, this is what you look like to me,” the post read. It was accompanied by an image of Jackson’s character from Django Unchained wearing an Argentina national team jersey.

Jackson’s character in the film, Stephen, is a senior enslaved man fiercely loyal to his owner, Calvin Candie, a brutal plantation owner in 1850s Mississippi.

“How can you call a country racist if you’ve never visited it?,” asked Angolan comedian and influencer Ari Balanga, who has lived in Argentina for the past decade, in a TikTok response to Jackson’s post.

“Before speaking about another country, you’ve got to look at your own country. Don’t generalize,” Balanga said. “People here are free, so I want to invite you, Samuel, to meet a true Argentine, not rumors about Argentines.”

Since the World Cup began in June, social media has been flooded with posts describing Argentina as a racist country, often pointing to the national team’s lack of Black players. Many users claimed Argentina was the only team in the tournament without Black players.

That claim is inaccurate. Several other national teams — including Paraguay, Mexico, Uzbekistan, South Korea, Bosnia, and Czechia — also fielded squads without Black players. 

Argentina and most of those countries do, however, include brown players and others with Indigenous or African ancestry, activists in Argentina noted.

“Indians” and “cabecitas negras”

“In the eyes of many Americans and Europeans, the........

© Buenos Aires Herald