England move Buenos Aires base to avoid potential World Cup party
Get the Sports newsletter
Daily sports — scores, transfers, the storylines from the leagues you actually follow. Free.
- England rugby team moved from a hotel off Plaza de la Republica to one near Buenos Aires international airport on the southern outskirts after fireworks continued until 4am following Argentina's 2-1 football World Cup semi-final win, with Borthwick noting "earplugs were issued to everybody."
- Henry Pollock taunted Argentina fans from the upper windows of the team bus before Wednesday's match — giving thumbs down, sticking out his tongue, and shushing — prompting one fan to punch the bus windows.
- Steve Borthwick defended Pollock's behavior, saying "Henry's full of character" and that the squad "embraces" his personality, framing it as done "in good nature."
- England face Argentina on Saturday at 20:10 BST in Santiago del Estero, 600 miles northwest of the capital, naming the same starting XV that beat Fiji 73-8 last weekend.
- Argentina's rugby squad includes a clutch of England-based players: Bath full-back Santiago Carreras, Bristol centre Matias Moroni, and Harlequins second row Guido Petti, with Julián Montoya captaining.
- England have won nine of their past 10 meetings with the Pumas, including both Tests on last summer's tour while England players were unavailable due to British and Irish Lions duty.
Why it matters: The hotel switch protects England's pre-flight recovery on a tour where they're 9-1 against the Pumas in recent meetings but had to play through a hostile Buenos Aires atmosphere — the same square that drew an estimated five million fans after Argentina's Qatar 2022 win now hosts celebrations that disrupted the squad's sleep cycle with one match and a long flight home still ahead.
