Ralf Edström, a football player who was part of the Swedish national team in the 1970s, revealed he was detained and questioned by the Argentine military while he was in Buenos Aires for the 1978 World Cup.
Edström told Swedish radio yesterday that he had gone out for a walk before a match against Austria when he was picked up by two armed men whom he suspected were military personnel. He was then taken to an office where he was questioned by a man sitting behind a desk, wearing sunglasses.
After answering some questions about his nationality and showing his accreditation to the World Cup, he was released. “My heart was beating fast, though at the same time I was sure they wouldn’t dare do anything to a World Cup player. But I can’t even imagine what would have happened had I not had my ID on me,” said Edström.
The player believes the incident could have been related to a chance encounter he had had with a stranger a couple of days before, when he was sitting at a café on his own. The man turned out to be a lawyer, who told him about the situation the country was going through with tears in his eyes, and the two men ended up hugging.
“I think that’s why those men, who I understand belonged tot he military junta, kidnapped me a couple of days later, because they had seen me with that person.”
Asked about the reason why he is making these revelations now, Edström said he thought the moment was “right”. After the incident, he talked about it with some of his fellow players, but did not tell his coach. “I thought about telling the media, but I thought it was a sensitive issue, keeping in mind we were halfway through the World Cup and that we were in Argentina,” said Edström.
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