Defending champions Argentina begin their World Cup title defense against Algeria in Group J on Tuesday at 8pm local time (01:00 GMT Wednesday) in Kansas City, USA. This is the opening match of the 2026 World Cup group stage.
Lionel Messi, the greatest star in Argentine football history, will play in his sixth World Cup — a record for a male player. He leads the team as Argentina seeks a fourth title. Coach Lionel Scaloni's side aims to become the third nation to successfully defend the World Cup, after Italy (1934, 1938) and Brazil (1958, 1962).
Argentina's squad includes 17 players from the Qatar 2022 triumph, but the average age is 29 — among the oldest at the tournament. Messi, nearly 39 and nursing minor injuries, draws attention as the first man to play in six World Cups.
Algeria, who reached the round of 16 in 2014 (losing to Germany in extra time), impressed with eight wins in qualifying and target the knockout stage directly. Captain Riyad Mahrez, young striker Ibrahim Maza (20, Leverkusen) — dubbed 'Mazadona' — and goal-scorer Mohamed Amoura (Wolfsburg) form a sharp attack under coach Vladimir Petkovic, who previously succeeded with Switzerland.
This is the second meeting between the sides, following a friendly 19 years ago (Argentina won 4-3), where Messi scored his first international brace. Argentina is unbeaten against African opponents at World Cups since 1990, and Opta's supercomputer gives them a 68.2% chance to beat Algeria, with only 13.2% for an upset.
The match will see expected lineups:
Argentina: E Martinez (GK); Molina, Romero, Lisandro Martinez, Medina; De Paul, Fernandez, Mac Allister, Almada; Messi, Lautaro Martinez.
Algeria: Zidane (GK); Belghali, Mandi, Chergui, Ait-Nouri; Bentaleb, Boudaoui; Mahrez, Maza, Amoura; Gouiri.
Fans can follow live match coverage and updates on standings and schedules at Al Jazeera's FIFA World Cup 2026 page.
