The FIFA World Cup final is set to attract the biggest names to New Jersey, including a few from the world of politics. As Spain and Argentina prepare to face off for the trophy, one key world leader is expected to miss out on seeing the spectacle firsthand.
Watch What’s Trending Now!
Argentinian president Javier Milei has made it clear that, despite the country’s opportunity to repeat as champions, the first of any team since 1962, he has decided against traveling to the US, choosing to follow a routine he sees as bringing the country’s team good luck.
“Absolutely not!” Milei said on radio station El Observador when asked about potentially attending the event. “I’ll watch the match at my Olivos residence with my sister, just like I’ve done since day one. It’s a superstition… Since it’s cold and I don’t turn on the heat, I wear an oil company-branded jacket. The day of the Switzerland game, it made me really hot. I took it off, and they scored a goal against us. I put it back on and never took it off again.”
This is in direct contrast to Spanish officials. Both Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and King Felipe VI are expected to attend the game in person. Apart from them, the president of the host country, Donald Trump, is also expected to be here, along with FIFA president Gianni Infantino.
Milei is just the latest in a long line of Argentinian presidents not visiting high-stakes World Cup games to avoid bringing bad luck to the team. It all started back in 1990, when sitting president Carlos Menem visited the team right before they suffered a surprising tournament-opening loss to Cameroon. Since then, no sitting Argentinian president has attended a national team match.
Milei isn’t the only Argentinian taking to superstitions, or as the Argentinians call them, Cabalas. Many people in the country stick to the same routine if the team keeps winning, with many wearing the same attire or even refusing to wash their clothes until the World Cup ends. Many, like Milei, also watch the game from the same spot, and humorously, some even aren’t allowed to watch at all, especially if they’re not present when Argentina scores.
It was for the same reason that AFA requested FIFA to change their semi-final kits from the home jersey (blue and white stripes) to the away one. Argentina’s historic 1986 quarter-final win over England came in the dark blue jersey, and they did not want to change anything about the tradition.
Whether Milei’s superstition pays off will only become clear when Lionel Messi and co take on Spain in one of the most anticipated finals in recent memory.
