Messi’s Argentina vs. Yamal’s Spain cancelled: AFA’s Claudio Tapia reveals the reasons behind the Finalissima’s drama

Lionel Messi’s Argentina and Lamine Yamal’s Spain will not face each other officially, resulting in the cancellation of the Finalissima. While alternative venues in Qatar were being considered, an agreement could not be reached. With this, UEFA revealed the reasons for the cancellation, casting the Argentine Football Association (AFA) in a negative light in its statement. However, President Claudio Tapia broke the silence, clarifying the real reasons behind the cancellation.

On his official X account, Claudio Tapia, president of the AFA, revealed key details about the cancellation of the Finalissima, citing the neutrality of the match as a factor that prevented it from being played. He also acknowledged that they learned about the proposal to play at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium through the media, which did not comply with the agreed principles, ruling out that possibility.

In addition, Tapia stated that the AFA accepted UEFA’s proposal to play the match at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome but requested a change of date to March 31. Far from seeking a solution, the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) informed them that these dates were not possible, leading to the cancellation of the match. With this, he aims to refute UEFA’s statement, which blamed Argentina’s constant rejection.

Despite these clarifications from Claudio Tapia, doubts still arise among fans, as they do not understand the reason for the date change, given that it had previously been agreed to be March 27. In addition, the AFA president did not reveal the reason why the proposal to play in a two-leg format was rejected, leaving fans with more questions than answers. With this in mind, a potential rescheduling of the Finalissima is not likely to happen.

Scaloni vs. de la Fuente: Two perspectives on the Finalissima

Before all the uncertainty surrounding the Middle East match arose, UEFA and CONMEBOL had reached a commercial agreement to play in Qatar, designating Lusail Stadium as the official venue. However, the forced change of plans caused the entire agreement for the Finalissima to fall through. Nonetheless, Argentina head coach Lionel Scaloni and Spain head coach Luis de la Fuente held two different perspectives on the clash.

According to Ben Jacobs on X, Messi and Scaloni did not want the Finalissima to be played right before the 2026 World Cup. Following the 6-1 loss to Spain ahead of the 2018 edition, the coaching staff felt that this had negatively impacted the team’s performance, so they do not want to face the same issue this time around.

Furthermore, Scaloni had previously criticized the date chosen by UEFA and CONMEBOL for the Finalissima: “I would have preferred not to play it before the World Cup… Spain couldn’t because they had the Nations League, which they came up with themselves, and for us South Americans, it’s been devastating, because we can’t compete against European teams,” he said, via TNT Sports in September 2025.

Unlike Scaloni, Spain’s Luis de la Fuente expressed his fully support to celebrate the Finalissima: “We still don’t know if the game will go ahead or not. We’re waiting for the federations and organizations responsible for making the decisions to do so. Personally, I’d love to see that match take place—the World Cup and Copa América champions against the European champions… I hope it happens, but it’s no longer up to us,” he said, via ESPN on December of 2025.