But as adrenaline levels soar, supporters need something to calm the nerves.<\/p>\n
Good luck rituals are common across the South American nation and a healthy dose of superstition is helping fans cope with the pressure.<\/p>\n
During the match, “no one moves from the spot they occupied the last time”, Andres Gonzalez told AFP in the working-class Liniers neighbourhood of Buenos Aires.<\/p>\n
The self-declared “football addict” believes it is essential for everybody to follow the rules.<\/p>\n
“If you went to the bathroom and there’s a goal, we lock you in. You stay there until the match is over,” the 48-year-old accountant explained with conviction.<\/p>\n
![\"ATLANTA,](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4JLCQM0_AFP__20260715__2286257325__v1__HighRes__EnglandVArgentinaSemiFinalFifaWorldCup2026_jpg.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n
Supporters with a Lionel Messi mask during the semi-final in Atlanta.<\/p>\n
Getty Images via AFP \/ Buda Mendes<\/p>\n
‘Cabala’<\/p>\n
Gonzalez is referring to a “cabala” – a ritual believed to bring good luck.<\/p>\n
Such practices take place throughout society, with Argentine President Javier Milei disclosing his own special habits on Thursday.<\/p>\n
“Under no circumstances” would Milei break his custom of watching World Cup matches from the presidential residence, he told El Observador radio.<\/p>\n
Over in saleswoman Estela Vargas’s house, match rituals are set in stone – everyone wears the same clothes and sits in the same chair, while the dog must stay outside.<\/p>\n
“In the match against England, since he’s an English bulldog, we put an Argentina jersey on him,” the 65-year-old said.<\/p>\n
“For Spain, rain or shine, he stays outside.”<\/p>\n
In Graciela Campos’s home, it is her mother-in-law who has to leave the room.<\/p>\n
“She goes into the kitchen and knits a blue-and-white scarf,” Campos said.<\/p>\n
![\"MIAMI](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4JLCQM0_AFP__20260715__2286276647__v1__HighRes__WorldCupFansGatherToWatchArgentinaVEnglandSe_jpg.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n
People react as Argentina beats England during a FIFA World Cup match watch party at the Miami Beach Bandshell on July 15, 2026 in Miami Beach, Florida.<\/p>\n
Getty Images via AFP \/ Joe Raedle<\/p>\n
‘Feeling involved’<\/p>\n
These wacky habits are no joke to those who practise them.<\/p>\n
“In football, Argentines don’t feel like spectators but like protagonists,” sociologist Diego Murzi told AFP.<\/p>\n
“Rituals are part of that – feeling involved by bringing good luck and warding off bad luck,” he said.<\/p>\n
“It’s something very present throughout the world of football,” Murzi added, pointing to former coach Carlos Bilardo as a prime example of the phenomenon.<\/p>\n
![\"ATLANTA,](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4JLCQM0_AFP__20260715__2286279413__v1__HighRes__EnglandVArgentinaSemiFinalFifaWorldCup2026_jpg.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n
Getty Images via AFP \/ Elsa<\/p>\n
Bilardo, who coached the team that won the World Cup in 1986, is “a man of science, but a superstitious person to an extreme degree”, Murzi said.<\/p>\n
The sociologist recalled the story of a phone that rang in the locker room during Argentina’s first match.<\/p>\n
“A player picked it up, and no one answered,” he said.<\/p>\n
“Bilardo saw that and, since Argentina won, before every match he would have someone call that phone, have the same player answer, and make sure no one responded.”<\/p>\n
‘Works every time’<\/p>\n
Wild excitement and frayed nerves come together in many of the capital’s neighbourhoods, almost all of which are decked out in blue and white.<\/p>\n
“All my rituals work every time,” said retiree Lidia Otero, who adores the national team just as much as her beloved Boca Juniors.<\/p>\n
The 74-year-old walked AFP through the specific gestures and chants she hurls at the TV when the other team is in possession.<\/p>\n
In the first half of the semi-final against England, she said, “the dog sat watching the TV and Argentina didn’t score”.<\/p>\n
“You know what?” she continued. “In the second half I turned her around, and that’s when the result turned around.”<\/p>\n
![\"Argentina's](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4JLGHQ4_AFP__20260712__B9XM6BK__v1__HighRes__FblWc2026Match100ArgSui_jpg.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n
Lionel Messi, left, and Diego Maradona on a fan’s drum at Argentina’s quarterfinal match against Switzerland at the Kansas City Stadium in Kansas City on July 11, 2026.<\/p>\n
JUAN MABROMATA<\/p>\n
Football legend Diego Maradona, who died in 2020, remains a figure of reverence in Argentina.<\/p>\n
Maradona’s former home in the Villa Devoto neighbourhood in Buenos Aires is the site of an altar to honour the beloved number 10.<\/p>\n
Nor has the age-old tradition of freezing Argentina’s opponents faded.<\/p>\n
“I grab the player’s sticker and put it in the freezer. My grandpa taught me that,” said 11-year-old die-hard Messi fan Rodrigo Serna.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Angst-ridden Argentine football fans are putting their faith in good luck rituals ahead of the Football World Cup…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":530154,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[111,139,69,213],"class_list":["post-530153","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/530153","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=530153"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/530153\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/530154"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=530153"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=530153"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=530153"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}