00:03Hello and welcome to The Cube, Euronews's fact-checking show.
00:07It's been a week since the World Cup ended, but misleading claims and conspiracies surrounding
00:12the tournament have continued in full force. The vast majority concerns Spain's victory
00:18over Argentina in the final and the controversies that have cast a shadow over the South American
00:24side during and after the competition. One post that has racked up almost 4 million views
00:29alleges that global football governing body FIFA needed a European champion. It says that FIFA
00:35president Gianni Infantino made a deal with UEFA, Europe's football governing body, to ensure Spain
00:41won the World Cup in return for its support for Infantino's re-election in 2027. The video
00:47attached to the post contains no evidence to back up the allegations, and a community note
00:52at the bottom highlights that Argentina lost the final because it had zero shots on target
00:57during the match. Another claim circulating online alleges that FIFA forced Argentina to
01:02either lose the final or face a 10-year ban from the World Cup after players unfurled a
01:08banner with the message the Falkland Islands are Argentine following their victory over England
01:14in the semifinals. However, there's no evidence that any such threat occurred. Reports state that
01:20FIFA is looking into the matter, but no official sanction has so far been announced. Article 34.3 of
01:26the World Cup's rules bans the display of political messages before, during and after any matches.
01:33Another conspiracy alleges that Argentina's players and their families were threatened before
01:38the World Cup final, using a clip showing captain Lionel Messi encouraging his teammates as evidence.
01:44But Argentina's manager Lionel Scaloni and some of the players' families have confirmed
01:49that no external pressure was applied on them.
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