Argentina return to the Dallas area (Cotton Bowl, Dallas) for the 2026 World Cup, 32 years after their last match there — a 0-2 loss to Bulgaria in the 1994 group stage.
Argentina
CONMEBOL · 19th World Cup appearance · Group J
Featured facts
Argentina enter the 2026 World Cup unbeaten in their last six World Cup matches (4W-2D) and having scored in each of those games.
Lionel Scaloni returns as defending champion after leading Argentina to the 2022 World Cup title.
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Lionel Messi enters his sixth World Cup with Argentina. Only Cristiano Ronaldo and Ochoa also made it to six editions, with the latter not appearing on each occasion.
Lionel Messi has scored in six of Argentina's last seven World Cup matches.
Argentina failed to win their opening match at each of the last two World Cups — drawing 1-1 with Iceland in 2018 and losing 2-1 to Saudi Arabia in 2022 — yet reached the final in both tournaments and won the title in 2022.
Messi is the World Cup's all time assist leader with 9. He is followed by James, Cuadrado (Colombia), Perisic (Croatia) and Griezman (France). Only the latter is not present in 2026 to increase his tally.
Lautaro Martinez was the player with most shots (13) without scoring at the 2022 World Cup
Messi, Otamendi and E. Martinez were the three Argentina players that did not miss a minute on the pitch at the 2022 World Cup. They are all back with the team in 2026.
11 of Argentina's 31 goals in the World Cup qualification came from set pieces
Argentina finished top of the table in the CONMEBOL qualification campaign, nine points ahead of number two Ecuador
Argentina have only nine new players from their 2022 winning squad.
Argentina have scored in each of their last 9 World Cup matches, netting 19 goals in total.
Argentina’s World Cup opening-match record is 11W-1D-6L across 18 appearances (27-19 goals). They have failed to score 2 times and kept 6 clean sheets in those opening games.
Argentina have advanced beyond the first group stage 14 times in 17 applicable World Cup group-stage appearances.
Argentina have kept 5 clean sheets in their last 6 international matches, scoring 20 goals at the other end.
2026 Fixtures
World Cup record
19
World Cup appearances
2 titles
88
matches played
47 won · 17 drawn · 24 lost
+51
goal difference
152 scored · 101 conceded
Recent World Cups
2022Runners-upW4 D2 L1→2018Round of 16W1 D1 L2→2014Runners-upW5 D1 L1→
Show 15 earlier appearancesHide earlier appearances↓
2010QuarterfinalW4 D0 L1→2006QuarterfinalW3 D2 L0→2002Group stageW1 D1 L1→1998QuarterfinalW3 D1 L1→1994Round of 16W2 D0 L2→1990Runners-upW2 D3 L2→1986WinnerW6 D1 L0→1982Group stageW2 D0 L3→1978WinnerW5 D1 L1→1974Group stageW1 D2 L3→1966QuarterfinalW2 D1 L1→1962Group stageW1 D1 L1→1958Group stageW1 D0 L2→1934Group stageW0 D0 L1→1930Runners-upW4 D0 L1→
All-time top scorers
1Lionel Messi202613goals
2Gabriel Omar Batistuta10goals
3Guillermo Stábile8goals
4Diego Armando Maradona8goals
5Mario A. Kempes6goals
6Gonzalo Higuaín5goals
7Julián Alvarez20264goals
8René Orlando Houseman4goals
9Leopoldo Jacinto Luque4goals
10Ricardo Daniel Bertoni4goals
Team profile
Argentina have won the World Cup 2 times, most recently in 1986.
Argentina have an average squad age of 28.6 at the 2026 World Cup.
Atlético Madrid supply 6 players to Argentina's 2026 World Cup squad, more than any other club.
2026 Squad
| # | Name | Birthdate (Age) | Club | WC Apps | WC Goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Juan MussoG | 6 May 1994(32) | Atlético Madrid | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | Leonardo BalerdiD | 26 Jan 1999(27) | Marseille | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | Nicolás TagliaficoD | 31 Aug 1992(33) | Lyon | 10 | 0 |
| 4 | Gonzalo MontielD | 1 Jan 1997(29) | River Plate | 4 | 0 |
| 5 | Leandro ParedesM | 29 Jun 1994(31) | Boca Juniors | 5 | 0 |
| 6 | Lisandro MartínezD | 18 Jan 1998(28) | Manchester United | 5 | 0 |
| 7 | Rodrigo De PaulM | 24 May 1994(32) | Inter Miami CF | 7 | 0 |
| 8 | Valentín BarcoM | 23 Jul 2004(21) | Strasbourg | 0 | 0 |
| 9 | Julián AlvarezF | 31 Jan 2000(26) | Atlético Madrid | 7 | 4 |
| 10 | Lionel MessiF | 24 Jun 1987(38) | Inter Miami CF | 26 | 13 |
| 11 | Giovani Lo CelsoM | 9 Apr 1996(30) | Real Betis | 0 | 0 |
| 12 | Gerónimo RulliG | 20 May 1992(34) | Marseille | 0 | 0 |
| 13 | Cristian RomeroD | 27 Apr 1998(28) | Tottenham Hotspur | 7 | 0 |
| 14 | Exequiel PalaciosM | 5 Oct 1998(27) | Bayer Leverkusen | 3 | 0 |
| 15 | Nicolás GonzálezM | 6 Apr 1998(28) | Atlético Madrid | 0 | 0 |
| 16 | Thiago AlmadaF | 26 Apr 2001(25) | Atlético Madrid | 1 | 0 |
| 17 | Giuliano SimeoneF | 18 Dec 2002(23) | Atlético Madrid | 0 | 0 |
| 18 | Nico PazF | 8 Sept 2004(21) | Como | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | Nicolás OtamendiD | 12 Feb 1988(38) | Benfica | 14 | 0 |
| 20 | Alexis Mac AllisterM | 24 Dec 1998(27) | Liverpool | 6 | 1 |
| 21 | José Manuel LópezF | 6 Dec 2000(25) | Palmeiras | 0 | 0 |
| 22 | Lautaro MartínezF | 22 Aug 1997(28) | Inter Milan | 6 | 0 |
| 23 | Emiliano MartínezG | 2 Sept 1992(33) | Aston Villa | 7 | 0 |
| 24 | Enzo FernándezM | 17 Jan 2001(25) | Chelsea | 7 | 1 |
| 25 | Facundo MedinaD | 28 May 1999(27) | Marseille | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | Nahuel MolinaD | 6 Apr 1998(28) | Atlético Madrid | 7 | 1 |