Football fans swarm the Australian live sites to celebrate Argentina’s World Cup win – with some supporters setting off flares despite the role they played in A-League disgrace
As the ‘GOAT’ Lionel Messi led Argentina to a fairytale World Cup win in Qatar, 12,000km away in Sydney, joyous fans celebrated wildly on the iconic Opera House forecourt.
In a game described as the greatest of all-time, a hattrick to French superstar Kylian Mbappe was not enough as La Albiceleste triumphed in a penalty shootout.
As the game finished 2-2 in regular time, both Messi and Mbappe scored in extra time in thrilling scenes that were scarcely believable – and didn’t the Sydney-based Argentina supporters love it.
In a sea of blue and white, they joyously sung in celebration of their first World Cup win since 1986, giving Messi the perfect end to his international career; much to the delight of the thousands of fans on the Sydney Opera House forecourt.
A female Argentina fan was dressed in the iconic La Albiceleste colours of Lionel Messi’s victorious World Cup side at the Sydney Opera House forecourt
Earlier at the World Cup viewing live site in Darling Harbour multiple flares were seen being lit and thrown despite the horrifying scenes in the Melbourne derby just a day prior
Argentina fans celebrate, complete with family photos, at the live viewing site in Tumbalong Park, Darling Harbour
As day broke on Monday in the wake of the thrilling World Cup final win, Argentina supporters celebrated on the forecourt of the iconic Sydney Opera House
Fans clutched replica World Cup trophies and sung at the Opera House as they celebrated the win
The scenes were a little more chaotic at the live viewing site in Tumbalong Park, Darling Harbour, however.
Despite the terrifying scenes in Saturday’s A-League derby in Melbourne, many fans could be seen throwing flares into the heaving crowd.
Fans stormed the field on Saturday night with flares before Melbourne City goalkeeper Tom Glover was left with concussion and needing stitches after being smashed in the face with a bucket full of sand in what has been called by Socceroos star Danny Vukovic as ‘Australian football’s darkest day’.
That clearly didn’t affect many of the fans present at the live viewing site, in a sign the flare/football relationship in Australia remains, unfortunately, strong.
Multiple flares could be seen alight at the live viewing site in Darling Harbour, with football fans not scared at igniting trouble despite the horrific scenes just a day prior in the A-League derby
An Argentinean fan holds his flag aloft at Darling Harbour after the side won a thrilling game in a penalty shootout
Many fans were seen dancing and singing on Monday morning in Sydney
One man was captured at Darling Harbour holding a flare that had been lit
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