Another controversy! Cristiano Ronaldo likes Instagram post claiming FIFA helped Argentina to World Cup finals

Cristiano Ronaldo (Image credit: AP) NEW DELHI: Cristiano Ronaldo has found himself at the center of a fresh controversy over the 2026 FIFA World Cup after his verified Instagram account liked a post accusing FIFA of helping Lionel Messi’s Argentina reach the final. The incident added to a tournament that has already seen several controversies, including protests over Iran, criticism of ticket prices, visa issues, Balogun’s suspended red card and intervention by US President Donald Trump.Ronaldo has not publicly explained why he liked the post, but screenshots showing his verified account @cristiano among those who liked the video quickly spread across social media.The picture was posted on Instagram by the Spanish TV program Espejo Público account ahead of the World Cup final between Spain and Argentina.The video featured journalist Pilar Rodríguez Losantos questioning Argentina’s path to the finals and making strong accusations against FIFA.She said: “Argentina is a team that should have been eliminated about five games ago, with the help of FIFA, which is one of the most corrupt institutions on planet earth.”Argentina opened their World Cup title defense with a 3-0 win over Algeria, with Lionel Messi scoring a hat-trick. They followed it up with a 2-0 win over Austria, where Messi recovered from an early penalty miss to become the all-time top scorer at the FIFA World Cup.A much-changed Argentina then beat Jordan 3-1, with Messi scoring from the bench as the defending champions finished top of their group.In the round of 16, they defeated Cabo Verde 3:2 after extra time. Lisandro Martinez put Argentina ahead in extra time before Cabo Verde equalized again. The win was finally sealed by Cristiano Romero’s header, which was deflected into the net by Diney Borges.The round of 16 against Egypt saw another dramatic comeback. Argentina recovered from two goals down to win 3-2, Enzo Fernandez completing the turnaround. The emotional victory left Messi in tears as Argentina avoided an early exit.In the quarter-finals, Argentina beat Switzerland 3-1 after extra time. Alexis Mac Allister opened the scoring before Dan Ndoye equalised. Julian Alvarez and Lautaro Martinez struck in overtime against a 10-man Swiss team.The defending champions then produced another late comeback in the semi-final to beat England 2-1. Enzo Fernandez equalized five minutes before Lautaro Martinez scored the winner in stoppage time to send Argentina to another World Cup final.Argentina’s hopes of retaining the World Cup ended in the final.Spain beat Lionel Scaloni’s side 1-0 after extra time, substitute Ferran Torres scoring the only goal of the game in the 106th minute to hand La Roja their second World Cup title.