There were clashes on the streets of Atlanta and Britain following England's semi-final defeat to Argentina on Wednesday night.

Fights broke out outside the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia after the final whistle confirmed the Three Lions' 2-1 defeat to Lionel Messi's side.

Police made multiple arrests as they stepped in to calm the situation, with pictures showing several England fans being detained by armed cops.

Meanwhile in London fans caused chaos as they took to the roads of the city centre, climbing on top of telephone boxes and surrounding lone Argentina fans. 

Tensions had already flared inside the stadium after Argentina took a banner from fans which claimed the Falkland Islands belong to the South American nation.

The Falklands conflict had loomed large in the build-up to the semi-final tie, with rival chants about the war featuring in fan zones around the city.

After the match was over, tens of thousands of fans flooded out of the stadium to the surrounding streets, with some disputes boiling over into violence.

England fans branded the behaviour of Argentina's supporters 'absolutely disgusting' and warned that things will 'kick off, 100 per cent'. 

The Atlanta Police Department deployed extra resources around the city, with officers lining the streets outside bars near the stadium after the crunch clash. 

Argentina and England fans outside bars near the stadium exchanged words – much of it Falklands-related.

American police officers with large guns were seen placing both England and Argentina fans in handcuffs.

One England fan told the Daily Mail: 'Obviously [we] were upset about the game, walking out the stadium, minding our own business.

'Some guy, Argentina fan, comes up waving his flag, shoves it in our face, winding us up. You know obviously someone's going to retaliate, right? But luckily we didn't retaliate but there's a lot of animosity.

'When Argentina scored, an Argentinian guy next to me took his shirt off, waving it, slapping it in my face, absolutely disgusting.

'Disgusting behaviour from the Argentinian fans, absolutely disgusting.

'Tonight there's not enough cops to police all of this. I'm telling you right now it's going to kick off later in bars and stuff for sure, 100 per cent.'

Back in the UK, police forces are also bracing for possible unrest between rival groups of fans.

In London, police were seen attempting to separate rival groups of fans to prevent fights breaking out. 

Thousands flocked into the streets of the city centre from nearby pubs and bars, with video footage showing carnage at famous landmarks such as Piccadilly Circus. 

Officers had to step in and rescue one Argentina fan from the area after he was mobbed by British supporters. 

Some England fans were seen climbing on phone boxes and traffic lights, with officers intervening to separate rival groups.

Earlier, an initially gutsy performance from the Three Lions saw Anthony Gordon put the side one ahead at 55 minutes, but substitutions to send England into a defensive set-up would heartbreakingly backfire.

England were just less than six minutes away from their first World Cup final for 60 years when Enzo Fernandez scored the equaliser that denied them. 

This was followed two minutes into injury time by a header from Lautaro Martinez, who secured Argentina's place in Sunday night's final against Spain in New York. 

It was England's fourth-ever appearance in the final four of a World Cup, making this the most high-stakes match since 1966.

But in an all too familiar outcome, supporters' hopes were dashed once again.