Argentine FA receives bomb threat after Copa America defeat

The headquarters of the Argentine Football Association (AFA) was evacuated on Monday after receiving a bomb threat hours after Argentina's Copa America final defeat.

With the nation reeling following the shootout loss to Chile and Lionel Messi's announcement that he will retire from international football, the sinister phone call led to AFA headquarters on Viamonte street being emptied as a precaution.

The AFA currently faces an institutional crisis, which could even lead to the nation being blacklisted by FIFA due to government intervention.

On Sunday, Judge Maria Servini de Cubria ordered investigators to impede the entry of FIFA observers and the creation of a normalisation committee in the association.

President Luis Segura and several other leading AFA figures are being investigated for the misappropriation of public funds through the Futbol para Todos program, with television rights to Primera Division games owned by the government.

The AFA is likely to reject the FIFA designation of Damian Dupielliet as an interim chief while the crisis continues, and if the world governing body deem that this defiance constitutes a breach of their rules Argentina could face a suspension from international competition and possible disaffiliation.