England rugby hides shirts in Buenos Aires amid World Cup fever
An unchanged England rugby side faces Argentina in the Nations Championship, but players are keeping a low profile in the city as a concurrent football World Cup semi-final between the two nations raises local tensions.
Jamie George will captain an unchanged England starting XV against Argentina on Saturday in the Nations Championship. The hooker will earn his 113th cap, moving him into outright fourth on England's all-time men's list. Head coach Steve Borthwick has made just two adjustments to the matchday squad, bringing in Ben Spencer and uncapped loosehead prop Emmanuel Iyogun as replacements.
However, the rugby contest in Santiago del Estero is playing out against a highly unusual cultural backdrop. England's rugby squad found themselves based in Buenos Aires during Wednesday's FIFA World Cup semi-final between the two nations. The timing of the football match has forced a notably pragmatic shift in how the rugby players navigate the host country.
While the squad openly wore England football jerseys in Liverpool last Saturday to support the national team, lock Alex Coles said they have adopted a more discreet approach in Argentina. "We've been pretty sensible about not wearing our English shirts around too much," Coles told The Telegraph. He noted they received a "better reception" for the jerseys in Liverpool than they anticipated doing locally.
The situation underscores the overwhelming scale of football within European public life. "I definitely love my football. I think there's a fair bunch of us that do," Coles said.
He added that the FIFA tournament "captures the imagination of the globe in a way that no other sport can." For elite athletes who recently secured a 73-8 victory over Fiji, the need to temporarily downplay their own national colours highlights football's unmatched ability to dictate the broader social mood.
Ellis Genge and Ollie Chessum will act as vice-captains for the 8.10pm BST kick-off. Borthwick said his players are prepared to embrace a "fantastic atmosphere with passionate home support." The match marks England's third fixture of the new-look Nations Championship, following an opening loss to South Africa and last weekend's victory.
