“Muchachos”: how the hit of 2003 became the unofficial anthem of Argentina’s success at the World Cup



CNN

If you have a catchy tune stuck in your head from world Cupmost likely this one.

Heard on the streets of Doha, in the stands of Lusail Stadium and even in Argentina dressing room, the 2003 hit “Muchachos” by La Mosca became the unofficial anthem Argentina World Cup Success.

Originally titled “Muchachos, esta noche me emborracho” – “Boys, tonight I’ll get drunk” – the song was rewritten by teacher Fernando Romero to mention Lionel MessiDiego Maradona and “Children of Las Malvinas”.

Romero renamed the song “Muchachos, ahora nos volvimos a ilusionar” – “Boys, now we have hope again” – and such was its popularity that La Mosca re-recorded the tune with new lyrics before the World Cup in Qatar, even featuring Romero in the new music video.

In an interview with the Argentinean edition El DetapeRomero said the song “changed my life”.

Lionel Messi and Diego Maradona are mentioned in the new version of Muchachos.

“I was born in Argentina/Land of Diego and Lionel/Children of the Malvinas Islands/Whom I will never forget,” the new text reads.

“Guys, now we have hope again / I want to win the third / I want to be world champion / And Diego / We can see him from heaven / With Don Diego and La Tota [Maradona’s parents]/Encouragement of Lionel.

“Las Malvinas” is the Spanish name for the Falkland Islands, located 480 kilometers off the coast of Argentina and the site of a bloody three-month war in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom, during which more than 600 Argentines died. soldiers lost their lives.

When England and Argentina met In the quarter-finals of the 1986 World Cup – a game now famous for Maradona’s “Hand of God” and “Goal of the Century” – they met for the first time in a sports arena since the Falklands War.

For many players, at least argentine side, friends or relatives who were called up for military service may even have died.

“It was like beating a country, not a football team,” Maradona wrote in his autobiography, I Am El Diego, of the 1986 World Cup match against England.

“Even though we said before the game that football had nothing to do with the war in the Malvinas Islands, we knew that many Argentine children died there, that they mowed us down like little birds.”

Prior to Qatar, 1986 was the last time Argentina won the World Cup, and Romero’s new lyrics encapsulate Argentine fans’ hope that Lionel Scaloni’s men can finally add a third star to the famous blue and white jerseys. Argentina won its first world title in 1978, when the South American country hosted the tournament.

With the Argentina national team landing in Buenos Aires In the early hours of Tuesday, you can be sure that numerous performances of “Muchachos, ahora nos volvimos a ilusionar” will be heard on the streets of the Argentine capital.

The new version of the song has already reached 13 million views on YouTube, and it is likely that by the end of the year this number will be significantly higher.