FIFA grants Argentina's 'special request' for England World Cup semi-final

FIFA granted Argentina a “special request” allowing the reigning champions to wear their dark blue away kit in the World Cup semifinal against England. The kit’s color scheme echoes the uniforms used during Argentina’s memorable victories over the Three Lions in 1986 and 1998, linking the design choice to historic wins. Lionel Scaloni’s team previously won the 2022 title in Qatar wearing their blue-and-white home strip, while the article notes that traditional colors were less fortunate in previous World Cup meetings against England in 1966 and 2002. Argentina’s navy away kit appeared once in 2026, during group stage success against Jordan, and FIFA has now approved the arrangement for the semifinal. England will play in all white, matching their quarter-final against Norway and their round of 32 win over DR Congo, and they last wore all white in 1998. FIFA also confirmed the other semifinal’s kits for Tuesday: France in blue shirts and white shorts, Spain in white shirts and red shorts.