Argentina fans revel in Copa triumph, a brief respite from country's crises

Argentines taking to the streets to revel in their Copa America final triumph inhabit a very different place now than they did 19 months ago when their World Cup win sent millions surging into the same Buenos Aires square in a howl of collective celebrationGlorious Diego Caacuteceres 38 recalled of Argentinas massive openair party on December 18 2022This is beautiful too he said of Sundays crowds cheering and setting off fireworks around the capitals landmark obelisk after Argentina beat Colombia 10 in extra time to win its third straight major tournament Sunday nightBut its a cherryontop or a reminder It makes me want to go back in timeEconomic crisis has stalked Argentina for years But today annual inflation tops 27037 Almost 6037 of the countrys 45 million people live in povertyArgentines have become worn out by the highstakes anxiety of the news Antigovernment protests raging labor strikes paralyzing cities President Javier Milei a selfdescribed anarchocapitalist unveiling new spending cuts and railing against feminism This week their televisions flashed dire warnings about the peso hitting new lows against the dollar dragging the value of their savings down with itThe last time Caacuteceres celebrated his national team in this downtown square he worked as a cook in various restaurants and rented an apartment Today he said hes unemployed and sleeps on the streetsEverything is horrible now he said after the game finally got underway in Miami after repeated delays due to fan congestionJust when you think things cant get more expensive they doAlso ReadRetiring Di Maria calls Copa final a dream farewellSome in this superstitious nation joke that they paid a steep price in Qatar for their first World Cup victory since 1986 pointing to the crises that followed the Copa America final triumphHas anyone checked the terms and conditions of winning the Copa Ameacuterica reads one post on X widely shared among Argentines I dont know if Im up for a second round of winning at any costBut Argentines say that they needed this tournament and this trophy more than they could have imagined For Argentina South Americas biggest soccer championship offered not just glorious achievement but exquisite if fleeting escapeIts our best entertainment thats what makes it so important said Erika Maya a 47yearold homeless mother of six as she peered at the televised match through the glass of a locked restaurant door You can forget everything thats going on and just enjoyFor every new outrage over the last 24 days Argentines have found the respite of obsessively watching their beloved national team led by Lionel Messi play for an hour and a half generating moments of agony and excitement that reverberate all over this soccercrazed countryFootball is the fruit of our society its what were proud of its what we give to the world said 21yearold soldier Fabrizo Diaz who watched the match with his girlfriendAlso ReadCopa America final gets marred by turbulent public outbursts WatchAs the game kicked off at Miamis Hard Rock Stadium restaurants in Buenos Aires shuttered streets emptied and the sprawling city fell eerily silent with most Argentines in thrall to their TVs at home as though under a COVID lockdown The looming specter of Messis retirement has heightened soccer fever in recent weeks with the 37yearold captains noncommittal muses in televised interviews inducing at turns nationwide hope and despairI believe Messi is going to continue I dont know if hell make it to the next World Cup but this is not the end said 32yearold Adrian Vallejos watching the final with his wife and son I mean God I hope soMessis persistent leg injuries including a hurt ankle in the secondhalf of the final that forced him off the field have drawn more attention than his performances during this Copa Ameacuterica But Argentines breathed a sigh of relief when asked by ESPN this week whether this match would be his last in blueandwhite Messi refused to rule out playing in the 2026 World CupWere at a very poignant transition for this team said Alejo Levoratti a sports sociologist at Argentine research institute CONICET Its only at the point of his retirement that Messi arrived at his best moment and found this connection with his team this communion with ArgentinaAnother Argentine great of the same age Aacutengel Di Mariacutea had announced Sundays match would be his last fueling a broader sense of nostalgia about the national squad He had tears in his eyes as he left the pitch to a standing ovation after Argentinas breakthrough goal I dreamt of retiring like this he told reporters afterwardAfter years of disappointments in international tournaments the Argentine team has more recently clinched triumph after triumph 2021 Copa Ameacuterica 2022 inaugural Finalissima match 2022 World Cup exhilarating its troubled country again and againPresident Milei who had a short stint as a goalie for the professional soccer team Chacarita Juniors congratulated the national team in an allcaps message on X WE ARE CHAMPIONS AGAINIn litterstrewn downtown Buenos Aires the site of so many protests in recent weeks national pride appeared briefly restored Friends and strangers draped in Argentinean flags and jerseys hugged and jumped up and down some singing Muchachos the unofficial anthem of the 2022 World Cup others chanting Messis nameWith agency inputs