Paraguay vs Argentina: Paraguayan Fans Banned from Wearing Messi-Themed Attire

The Paraguayan Football Association (APF) recently announced that people who will be watching the World Cup qualifier between Paraguay and Argentina will not be allowed to wear any items emblazoned with the image of the Argentine legend Lionel Messi. No jerseys other than those of Paraguay or colors that are not partisan will be permitted inside the Defensores del Chaco Stadium in Asunción on Thursday. This decision shows that Paraguay continues to provide their backing to their domestic team and maintain the audience’s attention on the Paraguay national squad.

Fernando Villasboa, the manager of APF, said this on Wednesday, “We want to stress that in those areas that are for local fans, only those in Paraguasi jerseys or colorless clothes will be allowed.” We will not permit jerseys that are in support of the rival team.” This means that supporters who wear Messi jerseys, either the Argentina, Barca, PSG or Inter Miami jerseys, will either have to remove them before entering the stadium or be locked out completely.

"This does not concern Messi himself; We respect his and every player’s career. But for us, it is important to strengthen home support, especially in matches played here,” added Villasboa. The APF’s position is that they seek to foster a single, Paraguayan-centered environment to support the national team in this decisive qualifier match.

At the moment, Argentina is the leader in the World Cup qualifier standings with 22 points; Colombia is second with only two points behind. Brazil has 16 points and occupies the third position and Uruguay also has 16 points and takes the fourth place, Ecuador and Paraguay have 13 points each. The qualifiers will guarantee six nations’ qualification to the 2026 World Cup in North America with the seventh nation to feature in the World Cup coming through an inter-continental play-off.

There has never been a better way to get tickets to the biggest soccer events around the world than now with the upcoming 2026 World Cup; to get World Cup 2026 tickets, you should visit 1BoxOffice to buy cheap World Cup 2026 tickets and other football tickets at an affordable price. Buy soccer tickets for the best prices now at 1BoxOffice!