Why England and Argentina hate each other in one of soccer's most heated rivalries

Entering Wednesday, it had been over 20 years since England and Argentina even played a match against one another. But even with a lack of recent matchups, the countries looked like bitter rivals at the 2026 World Cup.

Facing off in the semifinals, with Argentina still seeking to secure back-to-back tournament trophies and England seeking to break its 60-year World Cup title drought, tensions were high very quickly.

With constant physicality and fouls, including six in the opening 10 minutes on Wednesday, it was evident: England and Argentina are not teams that like each other very much. But why?

Here's what to know about the reasoning behind any bad blood between Argentina and England.

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Why England and Argentina hate each other

Prior to the 2026 World Cup semifinals, England and Argentina last met on the pitch in a 2005 friendly — and the last meaningful matchup between the countries came in the 2002 World Cup. But even without many clashes in the 21st century, the two teams have their reasons to dislike the other, even for reasons beyond soccer.

England vs. Argentina soccer

Even with the lack of significant matchups since 2000, when England and Argentina have met in their respective histories, they've often come with high stakes and plenty of drama.

Wednesday's match marked the sixth World Cup meeting between the countries all-time. The first came in 1962, which was a rather uneventful 3-1 win for England.

It was in the 1966 World Cup quarterfinals where the rivalry truly began — Argentina's captain, Antonio Rattin, was sent off in the first half for a lunge at Bobby Charlton. He attempted to dispute that decision to the referee for several minutes, saying he could not understand West German referee Rudolf Kreitlein, and only left the pitch with a police escort. Rattin also sat on a red carpet reserved for Queen Elizabeth II in protest.

England got a score from Geoff Hurst, enough for a 1-0 victory before going on to win the 1966 World Cup — but after the game, England manager Alf Ramsay described Argentina's players as "animals," only adding more tension.

"It was probably the nastiest and toughest game we experienced at a time when we talk about what was a rough time in English football -- quite violent to an extent -- that that game against Argentina was probably one of the nastiest games we've all played in," Hurst said, per ESPN. "But I think the use of 'animals' was a poor word. You can say dirty, nasty, vicious, whatever, but I think the word 'animals' wasn't particularly appropriate. He [Ramsay] did get his knuckles rapped for that."

MORE: Revisiting the infamous Diego Maradona 'Hand of God' game

By the 1986 World Cup, when the teams met again in the quarterfinals, there were political tensions involved due to a conflict over the Falklands Islands. This matchup led to one of the most iconic moments in World Cup history.

Argentina's captain and a star, Diego Maradona, hit the ball with his hand into the net — and the referees counted the goal despite protests from England. Four minutes later, Maradona made it 2-0 with a far less controversial score, running from inside his own half and beating a majority of the England defense.

When talking about that goal later on, Maradona said he did "a little with the head of Maradona and a little with the hand of God" — and while a famous quote was born, the tensions of the clearly violated rule on the difference-making goal and a 2-1 loss to be eliminated from the World Cup stung.

Maradona Magic at its finest. 🇦🇷🪄#FIFAWorldCup | #OTD pic.twitter.com/Fj6hUpSwPl

A sense of injustice, on top of the political tensions, followed for England toward Argentina for years.

"I'll never forgive him [Maradona]," England defender Terry Butcher said, per ESPN. "At the end of the day, it's not nice when you lose a World Cup quarterfinal under those circumstances. It's very hard to forgive and forget."

Maradona, however, remained unapologetic for decades.

"I knew it was my hand," Maradona said in 2019, per ESPN. "It wasn't my plan, but the action happened so fast that the linesman didn't see me putting my hand in. The referee looked at me and he said: 'Goal.' It was a nice feeling, like some sort of symbolic revenge against the English."

Most recently in the World Cup, the countries met in 1998 and 2002. That first matchup was in the Round of 16, an Argentina win on penalties — and its a game that's most well-known for England's golden star, David Beckham, being sent off for kicking Argentina's Diego Simeone. England was forced to play down a man for most of the matchup.

In 2002, however, England and Beckham got revenge, with the star getting an opportunity to knock through a penalty kick for the only goal in a 1-0 win. While that matchup was in the World Cup group stage, it was redemption for Beckham after his mistake in 1998.

All of that drama over a few generations of World Cup matches has led to drama and controversy often surrounding England vs. Argentina.

MORE: Full England vs. Argentina history, head-to-head World Cup matches

England vs. Argentina Falklands Islands 

There's also an off-the-pitch element to the rivalry. In 1982, the countries had a conflict that lasted 74 days regarding the Falkland Islands, which are known in Argentina as the Malvinas, located 300 miles off Argentina's Atlantic coast. In the 17th and 18th centuries, the islands changed hands a few times during the colonial era, including France and Spain.

Britain established a settlement in the islands from 1765 to 1816, which is when Argentina claimed independence from Spain, declaring its rights to take over the Falklands Islands as well. In 1833, however,  Britain sent naval forces to remove Argentina's authorities from the islands. In the many years afterward, though it was a diplomatic dispute, Britain held control of the islands, which Argentina considered illegal.

In 1982, however, Argentina's military invaded the Falklands Islands, seeking to take over control. The British government, in response, dispatched a naval task force; that conflict lasted around two months, until Argentine troops surrendered in June 1982. Around 649 Argentinians and 255 British military personnel died during the conflict. 

Control of the islands has remained a controversial topic since, with Argentina claiming control despite losing a referendum in 2013, where the citizens of the islands voted to remain a British overseas territory. 

Britain still claims sovereignty over the islands and maintains a military presence there, but Argentina continues to pursue its ambitions to reclaim the Falklands Islands.