Atlanta police gear up for trouble at England vs Argentina World Cup match

Police in ‌‌Atlanta are preparing for the World Cup semifinal between ⁠⁠Argentina and England, a match seen as potentially high risk for trouble given the history of animosity between the ⁠⁠two countries.

The Atlanta Police Department said on Wednesday that it will have enhanced security in place, proactive measures that were the result of continual ⁠⁠security assessments.

The stadium in downtown Atlanta normally hosts NFL and Major League Soccer.

There have been isolated reports of minor disorder in the run-up to the match, but the atmosphere was peaceful on Wednesday morning, ‌‌with fans gathering in cafes and bars or playing cards as they waited outside the stadium.

In Mexico, earlier in the tournament, there was a deadly crush as fans celebrated, but this World Cup has generally been free of the violent disorder that blighted some matches in the 1980s and 1990s.

Still, authorities are taking ⁠⁠no chances. For the first time at this ⁠⁠tournament, rival fans will be channelled through separate entrances at the stadium.

The rivalry between Argentina and England goes back decades and stems both from controversies at football matches, as well as geopolitical tensions. It intensified in the wake of the 1982 military conflict between the two ⁠⁠countries over the Falkland Islands/Malvinas and South ⁠⁠Georgia in the South Atlantic.

Argentina’s security minister said Argentina fans would not be able to take any flags or banners into the stadium that assert Argentinian sovereignty ‌‌over the islands.

FIFA rules ban items in stadiums making political expressions, although earlier in the tournament in Los Angeles, Iranian Americans carrying ‌‌flags ‌‌protesting against the Tehran government entered the stadium and the game proceeded without issue.