NYON, Switzerland (AP) — UEFA said Sunday that the game between Argentina and Spain known as Finalissima that was supposed to be held in Qatar has been canceled after the widening Middle East war.
The game between South American champion Argentina and European champion Spain was scheduled to be held in Doha on March 27. It was going to be a marquee matchup between the teams led by Lionel Messi and Lamine Yamal before this summer’s World Cup in North America.
But the security of the game was put into serious doubt when Iran intensified its attacks on neighboring countries in retaliation to the aerial attacks by United States and Israel that are now in their third week.
“After much discussion between UEFA and the organizing authorities in Qatar, it is announced today that due to the current political situation in the region, the Finalissima between UEFA EURO 2024 winners Spain and CONMEBOL Copa América 2024 champions Argentina cannot be played as hoped in Qatar on 27 March,” UEFA said in a statement.
Argentina and Spain were to play at Lusail Stadium, which staged the epic 2022 World Cup final. Argentina won a penalty shootout against France after Messi scored twice and Kylian Mbappé got a hat trick in a thrilling 3-3 draw.
Other venues had reportedly been considered as alternatives to Doha, including Spain's capital. UEFA, however, said all other feasible alternatives it explored “ultimately proved unacceptable to the Argentinian Football Association.”
“The first option was to stage the match at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid on the original date with a 50:50 split of supporters in the stadium,” UEFA said. “This would have provided a world-class setting, befitting of such a prestigious event, but Argentina refused."
The option of staging the event over two legs — one in Madrid on March 27, the other in Buenos Aires before the Euros and Copa America in 2028 — was also rejected. Argentina had proposed to play the match later this year after the World Cup but Spain had no available dates.
South American soccer body Conmebol said in a statement on Sunday that Argentina’s soccer federation (AFA) received an offer from UEFA to play the match in Italy on March 27, but the defending World Cup and Copa America champions countered that the game take place on March 31.
“Regrettably, UEFA said the match taking place on the 31st – only four days after their original offer – was not possible, and so the Finalissima was cancelled,” the South American confederation said. “CONMEBOL and AFA regret deeply that, despite all the efforts and the manifested interest in playing the match in a neutral ground since the first moment, it was not possible.”
Argentina won the inaugural edition of the Finalissima in 2022 with a 3-0 victory over Italy at Wembley Stadium in London.
The violence in the Middle East, where Iran is hitting the Gulf Arab states with drone and missile attacks, has stranded travelers, upset economic markets and sent oil prices soaring.
It has also impacted the world of international sport beyond the Finalissima. Formula 1’s races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia scheduled for April have been called off due to the war, while President Donald Trump has suggested that Iran not participate in this summer's World Cup that is co-hosted by the U.S.
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FILE - Spectators fill the stands during the World Cup round of 16 soccer match between Portugal and Switzerland, at the Lusail Stadium in Lusail, Qatar, Dec. 6, 2022. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein, file)
LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) — Supporters of Bolivia’s influential ex-President Evo Morales clashed with police on Monday in the capital city as they called on the president to resign, joining a nationwide protest movement fueled by the worst economic crisis in a generation.
Thousands of Morales' followers converged on the plaza outside the government headquarters as Bolivia remains paralyzed by road blockades that have strangled cities and triggered food and fuel shortages in the last two weeks.
The unrest presents the biggest challenge yet for President Rodrigo Paz, a business friendly centrist who came to power six months ago as a wave of conservative electoral wins swept the region.
Security forces pushed back protesters who tried to break police ranks with canisters of tear gas before they could reach Congress or the presidential palace. Dynamite blasts rumbled, forcing staffers and lawmakers to evacuate. “Homeland or death, we will win!” demonstrators chanted, ripping shop doors off their hinges and setting fire to looted sofas used as barricades.
The public prosecutor announced 90 arrests.
“They can march if it’s peaceful, but we will take action if they commit crimes,” said Deputy Interior Minister Hernán Paredes.
Paz's shock victory last year highlighted Bolivians' disillusionment with two decades of political domination by Morales’ Movement Toward Socialism, or MAS, party, as the country reeled from its worst economic crisis in 40 years. But his victory over more right-wing candidates also revealed the nation's unwillingness to support drastic austerity measures.
As Bolivia's first elected conservative leader since 2006, Paz has sought to balance belt-tightening with the need to placate Morales' powerful allies who could disrupt his presidency.
To rein in a massive budget deficit, he eliminated fuel subsidies that represented a pillar of the MAS economic model. But he maintained social welfare programs and offered new benefits to informal workers to blunt the blow of inflation.
That wasn't enough for many Bolivians. The protest movement began with the national labor union demanding wage hikes. Then farmers furious about poor quality fuel joined. Then miners strapped for dynamite piled on pressure. Now loyalists of Morales want Paz gone.
“Small things have been accumulating — the wage issue, the economic crisis, dirty gasoline that people say is ruining their cars, diesel shortages," said Veronica Rocha, a Bolivia political analyst. “There’s a huge portion of the population that feels orphaned politically. They don’t trust anyone anymore, and because of that, anything can happen.”
Paz accuses Morales of orchestrating the unrest to undermine his administration. Road blockades have long been a main weapon of social movements tied to Morales that claim to represent Bolivia’s rural Indigenous majority.
Over the past 16 days, the protest tactic has stranded around 5,000 trucks on highways, leaving supermarket shelves empty and hospitals without some medical supplies. Critics say it's a perverse way to protest economic pain — business chambers report the blockades cause over $50 million in losses a day.
Paz has negotiated with some protest groups, reaching deals in recent days with striking miners and teachers who agreed to end their demonstrations. He deployed thousands of police and military officers across La Paz to try to break the blockades over the weekend.
But the crisis continues, worrying the wider region. Eight allied Latin American governments, from Chile to Costa Rica, released a joint statement rejecting “any action aimed at destabilizing the democratic order.” Neighboring Argentina said it would start a weeklong humanitarian airlift to alleviate shortages in the country.
The United States, now rebuilding relations with Bolivia after years in which Morales defined the country in opposition to Washington, said it supported Paz’s efforts “to restore order for the peace, security and stability of the Bolivian people.” The State Department issued an alert this week urging U.S. citizens traveling to Bolivia to be vigilant.
Morales marshaled the latest march from his hideout in Bolivia's remote tropics. He has been holed up in the highlands for the past year and a half, evading an arrest warrant on charges relating to his sexual relationship with a 15-year-old girl. He says the allegations are politically motivated.
Right-wing politicians have seized on the protests to demand authorities arrest Morales, who was held in contempt of court last week after he failed to appear for a trial.
But Morales' enduring influence “is only one piece of the puzzle,” Rocha said. "If the government wants to survive politically, it will have to make drastic changes.”
DeBre reported from Ushuaia, Argentina.
Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america
A protester returns a tear gas canister to police during an anti-government protest in La Paz, Bolivia, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)
A protester returns a tear gas canister to police during an anti-government protest in La Paz, Bolivia, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)
Military police stand outside the government palace while anti-government protests take place in La Paz, Bolivia, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)
Police stand guard behind a fence during anti-government protests near the government palace in La Paz, Bolivia, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)
A miner launches a firecracker at police during an anti-government protest in La Paz, Bolivia, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)
