THE Government was on the verge of withdrawing UK teams from the 1982 World
Cup with players "revolted" at the thought of playing then-enemy
Argentina, newly-released documents have revealed.
Sports minister at the time Neil Macfarlane urged Prime Minister Margaret
Thatcher to scratch England, Scotland and Northern Ireland after they
qualified for the tournament in Spain.
In April - two months before kick-off - Macfarlane said there should be "no
sporting contact" on British soil with the South American nation at any
level because of the Falklands War.
But in May after 20 Royal Navy seamen lost their lives in an Argie Exocet
missile strike on HMS Sheffield - the first deaths in the UK task force to
re-take the islands - his tone steeled.
He wrote: "Up until a week or ten days ago I have taken the line that it
was up to the Football Authorities to decide whether they should
participate.
"However, the loss of British life on HMS Sheffield has had a marked
effect on some international footballers and some administrators.
"They feel revulsion at the prospect of playing in the same tournament as
Argentina at this time. Much has appeared in the sporting pages and much
more will appear the longer these hostilities continue."
He added that some leading players would find it "difficult to meet
Argentina on a sports field" in Spain if fighting was continuing in the
South Atlantic.
Cabinet secretary Robert Armstrong advised ministers to assess the strength of
public feeling and warned no other country would pull out in support.
He added that withdrawl could hand Argentina a propaganda coup, while the
Brazilian head of FIFA said there was no question of barring the Argies.
Britain's ambassador in Madrid said withdrawing would be seen as a slight
against Spain.
England - at their first World Cup since 1970 - could have met Argentina in
the final, while Scotland could have met them in the second round.
Trevor Francis, Britain's first £1 million player and a member of the England
squad in Spain, told The Sun: "I remember it being a very delicate one.
Other players were just like myself, hoping it would be resolved, having
worked so hard to get there, we did not want to lose the opportunity of
appearing in a World Cup.
"I don't think it affected the team. Our last game against Spain was 0-0.
The situation did make our task more difficult because of a partisan
attitude by the home Spanish supporters - it was very hostile in the
Bernabeu."
The documents were release by the National Archive HQ under a 30-year rule.