Atlanta, July 13: England will wear their traditional all-white home strip when they take on defending champions Argentina in the FIFA World Cup semifinal on Wednesday, while the South Americans will line up in their navy blue away kit.
Argentina have worn the darker strip only once during the tournament, in their group-stage victory over Jordan. However, local media reports suggest the team opted for the away kit because of its association with memorable World Cup victories over England.The navy blue kit was worn during Argentina’s famous 2-1 quarterfinal win in 1986, featuring Diego Maradona’s controversial “Hand of God” goal, and again in their penalty shootout triumph over England in the 1998 Round of 16.
England, meanwhile, defeated Argentina 1-0 in the 2002 World Cup group stage while wearing their red away kit, with the South Americans sporting their iconic sky blue and white stripes.
FIFA generally prefers teams to wear their primary kits but may require alternate colours to ensure sufficient contrast, particularly for spectators with colour vision deficiency.
England booked their place in the last four with a 2-1 extra-time win over Norway, while Argentina edged Switzerland 3-1 after extra time to set up the highly anticipated semifinal clash. (Agencies)
