标签： South America

As the FIFA World Cup kicks off matches in Kansas City, Missouri, soccer fans from across the globe have brought more than just team flags, jerseys, and chants to their matchday celebrations – they’ve brought a centuries-old cultural tradition: yerba mate. The caffeinated South American staple, long embedded in the daily life of countries like Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and southern Brazil, has ridden soccer’s multicultural wave to grow in popularity across the United States, even becoming a go-to beverage for top professional athletes both on and off the pitch.

When the reigning World Cup champions from Argentina arrived at their Kansas City hotel ahead of their opening group stage match, hundreds of fans gathered outside, passing around traditional hollowed gourd cups fitted with metal bombilla straws – the signature tool that filters the steeped yerba leaves while sipping. Just blocks away, at Cafe Corazon, one of the Midwest’s largest yerba mate importers, a line of fans clad in Argentina’s iconic sky-blue and white striped jerseys stretched out the door on the eve of the team’s first 2026 World Cup match.

“Our mate has been flying off the shelves,” shared Dulcinea Herrera, co-owner of the local cafe. “So many new people are coming in to try it. Non-Argentinian visitors want to experience the tradition for themselves, while Argentinian expats tell us sipping here reminds them of home.”

The drink’s connection to elite world soccer is no secret, with many of the sport’s biggest names counting themselves as lifelong fans. Uruguay’s Luis Suarez is known to be an avid drinker, and Argentina’s Lionel Messi cemented the beverage’s place in sports pop culture after the 2022 World Cup final, when he shared a photo of himself holding the World Cup trophy in one hand and a traditional mate gourd in the other.

Yerba mate has a rich history stretching back centuries, originating with Indigenous communities in South America before being adopted by the region’s iconic gaucho cowboys, explains Christine Folch, a Duke University cultural anthropologist and author of *The Book of Yerba Mate*. Today, it has been adapted across the globe, with different cultures putting their own unique spin on preparation and serving. Regional preparation customs even act as cultural identifiers when fans gather for matches, with drinkers from different South American nations preferring distinct vessels and brewing methods. Folch herself maintains an extensive collection of mate vessels, including pieces crafted from cow hooves and horns, hand-stitched leather-wrapped metal cups, and traditional hollowed gourds.

The drink’s global spread took an early turn in the 20th century, when it gained widespread popularity in Syria and Lebanon – a history that explains why traditional dried yerba mate leaves have long been available at Middle Eastern grocery stores across the United States, Folch notes. For mainstream American consumers, yerba mate is most often sold in refrigerated canned form, marketed as a natural energy drink infused with fruit flavors. Cuban American communities have developed their own sweetened, carbonated version of the beverage, while in Berlin, the carbonated brand Club Mate is a popular mixer for alcoholic drinks.

Unlike coffee, which often leaves drinkers feeling jittery from high caffeine concentrations, traditional yerba mate carries a mild smoky note from its traditional leaf-smoked preparation, with an earthy, grassy flavor profile that delivers steady energy without the unpleasant crash. For first-time buyers, Folch adds, the correct pronunciation is “MAH-teh” – not the English word for a soccer teammate.

Beyond its caffeine boost and unique flavor, yerba mate is fundamentally a social beverage, making it a perfect fit for large sporting gatherings. By longstanding tradition, drinkers share a single cup among a group, passing it around to build connection. “When somebody offers you mate and you accept, you’ve stepped into a relationship,” Folch explained. “It’s a way of bonding with people.”

That social tradition played out in full at Cafe Corazon this June, as traveling fans connected over shared cups of mate ahead of the match. Sebastian Cufre and his father Rene, a native Argentinian who now lives in Albuquerque, drove cross-country to Kansas City in search of last-minute match tickets, and ended up bonding with fellow Argentina fans over a round of mate at the cafe. “It’s something you always pass around during games,” Rene Cufre said. Though he’s seen the mass-market canned American version of the drink, he is not a fan: “Honestly, I don’t even consider that to be mate. That’s a completely different type of beverage.”

No matter the preparation style, mate fans across Kansas City are encouraging North American fans to give the traditional drink a try when it’s passed around at cafes, watch parties, or stadium concourses. For many, it is far more than a drink to boost matchday energy – it is a way to connect across boundaries. “It’s not only a drink, but a social thing,” said Fernando Villagran, an Argentinian fan who traveled from California to support his national team. “It is about friendship.”

The 2026 FIFA World Cup, the first iteration of the tournament co-hosted by three nations — the United States, Canada, and Mexico — and the first held on U.S. soil since 1994, is set to deliver one of its most emotionally charged group stage matchups: Haiti versus five-time world champion Brazil. For Haitian fans at home and across the global diaspora, this pairing is far more than a simple David-versus-Goliath contest. It is a lifetime dream come true, pitting a beleaguered underdog national team against a soccer powerhouse that Haitians have adored for generations.

Peguy Joseph, a Haitian living in Florida who has cheered for Brazil his entire life, will get to attend the June 19 match in Philadelphia — on his birthday, no less — marking the first time he will ever not root for the Brazilian side. “It’s a double joy,” Joseph explained. “I’ll be happy if Haiti win — but if Haiti lose, I won’t be sad, because it’s Brazil! It’s the fanaticism. When you love it, you love it.” He is far from alone in this conflicted excitement: thousands of dual-aligned Haitian fans across the U.S. and beyond are grappling with a one-of-a-kind mix of national pride and lifelong fandom ahead of the historic game.

Even Brazilian fans are embracing the friendly energy of the matchup. Rafael Saldanha, a Brazilian resident of New York City who scored a ticket to the game, called the pairing a happy coincidence. “I was happy actually, when I learned that Brazil’s going to play Haiti, because I know these are two very friendly nations to each other,” he said. “Both are nations that have their own internal struggles. But at the same time, these are two countries whose populations manage to be extremely happy … regardless, or in spite, of the challenges posed on them every day.”

Haiti’s journey to this World Cup match is a story of against-all-odds resilience. The Western Hemisphere’s poorest nation has not qualified for the World Cup since 1974, and this cycle it faced extraordinary barriers to qualification: armed gangs control most of Port-au-Prince, where the national team’s home stadium is located, forcing the Grenadiers, as the squad is nicknamed, to play all their home qualifying matches on the Caribbean island of Curaçao, without the cheers of their local fanbase. Still, the team fought past higher-ranked rivals to book its place in Group C alongside Morocco, Scotland, and the beloved Brazilian powerhouse. Currently ranked 84th in the world against Brazil’s 6th place standing, Haiti enters the matchup as a 30-to-1 underdog, but fans and analysts alike are pointing to soccer’s long history of stunning upsets.

Haiti’s deep affection for Brazil’s national team stretches back more than 40 years, rooted in cultural connection and shared history. As the first Black-led republic in the world, many Haitians see themselves in Brazil’s storied legacy of Black superstars, from Pelé to Romario, Ronaldo Nazario, and Neymar — icons whose faces were painted on the bright tap-tap minibuses that crisscross Port-au-Prince for generations. It was at the 1982 World Cup that millions of Haitians first fell in love with Brazil’s iconic jogo bonito, the beautiful game, led by the legendary captain Sócrates. Subsequent decades cemented that loyalty: fans celebrated Brazil’s 1994 and 2002 World Cup titles as if they were their own, and the bond deepened in 2004 when Brazil led a United Nations peacekeeping mission to Haiti, organizing an exhibition match in Port-au-Prince that drew thousands of cheering fans lining the route from the airport to the stadium to greet Brazilian greats including Ronaldo and Roberto Carlos. Even after Haiti lost 6-0 that day, fans waved Brazilian flags in celebration of the historic visit.

In the years since, migration has only strengthened the connection between the two nations: thousands of Haitians relocated to Brazil after the devastating 2010 earthquake, and more have settled there in recent years fleeing ongoing gang violence and political unrest back home. For Haitian diaspora communities in the U.S., who have faced years of uncertainty over immigration policy, this World Cup run has become a unifying moment of pride that puts daily struggles on hold.

Joel Jean-Baptiste, a Haitian-American who grew up in Haiti and has supported Brazil his whole life, canceled a planned family vacation to Europe just to buy a ticket to the June 19 match. “For us, and for all Haitian kids, Brazil was number one,” he said. “Playing them in the World Cup would be — IS — the dream, a lifetime dream and has every Haitian national excited to see what’s going to happen this summer.”

Rachelle Leger, a Haitian-American community leader in Philadelphia, summed up the prevailing mood. “It’s almost like David and Goliath — we’re going up against a giant, a huge soccer giant,” she said. “We’re not looking at it like a rival; we’re looking at it as a moment in time. We’re just savoring it, we’re really proud of Haiti making it, we’re really proud to be there to support the team, even though (Haitians) support both teams.”

For those holding out hope for a historic upset, soccer scholar Kirk Bowman, a Georgia Tech professor who teaches courses on soccer and global politics and has written extensively on the sport’s globalization, notes that a Haitian underdog already made soccer history at the 1950 World Cup held in Brazil. That tournament, a hastily assembled U.S. team of part-time amateur players pulled off one of the biggest upsets in soccer history, beating a top-ranked England side 1-0. The game-winning goal was scored by Joe Gaetjens, a Haitian working as a dishwasher and semi-pro player in New York City. After the win, jubilant Brazilian spectators — who saw England as the main threat to their own title bid — carried Gaetjens off the field. Though Gaetjens was later killed under Haiti’s brutal Duvalier regime, his place in soccer lore endures.

“Haiti can believe in another Haitian ‘miracle on grass,’” Bowman said. “A Haitian already had one.”

As the 2026 FIFA World Cup preparations ramp up, every participating nation’s squad and coaching staff have completed the mandatory official photoshoots that have become a beloved pre-tournament tradition over the past 10 years. But it was one unconventional portrait from Uruguay’s head coach Marcelo Bielsa that has captured global football attention – a moment perfectly in keeping with the iconic maverick reputation that has defined the 70-year-old’s decades-long career.

Known universally by his nickname ‘El Loco’ (The Crazy One), Bielsa has always stood out from the crowd in world football. Famous for his obsessive focus on tactical detail, his unorthodox habit of sitting on a cool box on the touchline during matches, and his past tenure managing English Championship side Leeds United, he has long cultivated a persona that rejects the polished performativity expected of top sports coaches. This legacy was on full display in his official FIFA headshot.

Where most managers and players lean into the moment, smiling for the camera and leaning into the spotlight of the world’s biggest football tournament, Bielsa chose not to look directly into the lens. Instead, he stared stonily toward the ground, giving the impression he would much rather be on the training ground putting his squad through their paces or poring over opposition match tape than posing for photos. The unusual portrait quickly sparked speculation across social media and football circles, with many suggesting the downward gaze could be a deliberate political protest or statement against FIFA.

Those rumors were put to the test after Uruguay’s opening pre-tournament friendly against Saudi Arabia in Miami, which ended in a 1-1 draw on Monday. When reporters pressed Bielsa on the story behind his portrait stance, the veteran coach rejected calls for an explanation, pushing back on the idea that he owed any insight into his choice of pose.

“I don’t have to give any explanation, the picture was taken the way it was taken,” Bielsa told reporters. “I’m not a model.”

When the topic came up again later in the press conference, after he had moved on to answer questions about the friendly and upcoming matches, Bielsa expanded on his frustration with the media attention over the photo. He argued that there was no deeper meaning to his pose, and that the public and press had no right to demand explanations for every small choice public figures make.

“There is a limit in terms of what we need to explain,” he added. “If I’m wearing glasses, why am I wearing glasses? You look somebody in the eye, why do you do that? There is nothing wrong about wearing glasses or looking into somebody’s eyes or looking down.”

Bielsa is no stranger to the World Cup stage, with this tournament marking his third appearance as a national team head coach. He previously led his native Argentina and Chile at past World Cups, and is widely regarded as one of the most innovative and respected tactical minds in the modern game.

Up next, Uruguay is set to face off against Cape Verde, one of the tournament’s surprise qualifiers, in their second group stage match on Sunday at 23:00 BST. The match will be a key test for Bielsa’s squad as they look to progress past the group stage in one of the most competitive World Cups in recent memory.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — As the 2026 FIFA World Cup kicks off its first match for defending champions Argentina here at Arrowhead Stadium on Tuesday night, all eyes are fixed on one man: Lionel Messi, the Argentine icon widely regarded as the greatest soccer player of all time. For Argentina head coach Lionel Scaloni, who shares a deep-rooted connection with Messi that stretches back decades, the global fascination with the 36-year-old forward is no surprise.

Both Scaloni and Messi hail from Argentina’s Santa Fe province, and both rose through the youth ranks of Newell’s Old Boys, the storied Rosario-based club that has produced a long list of soccer legends, from Gabriel Batistuta to current U.S. men’s national team coach Mauricio Pochettino. Having watched Messi’s career unfold for nearly his entire professional life, Scaloni says the entire world craves to see Messi step onto the pitch.

“Not only the Argentinian population but everybody — the whole planet — wants to see him play,” Scaloni said in an interview ahead of the opening Group C match against Algeria. “Everybody wants to see him on the pitch, because he has an effect not only on Argentina fans but supporters all over the world.”

For many fans in attendance on Tuesday, this will likely be the final chance to watch Messi compete in a World Cup wearing Argentina’s iconic light blue and white striped jersey. Questions about Messi’s fitness circulated in the weeks leading up to the tournament, after the Inter Miami star picked up a minor hamstring injury. But those concerns appear to have been put to rest: in training sessions open to reporters, Messi has looked sharp and comfortable, and he played 20 minutes without issue in Argentina’s final pre-tournament tuneup against Iceland last week, entering as a second-half substitute and scoring a penalty just minutes after checking in.

Barring any last-minute unforeseen issue, Messi will hit a historic milestone in Tuesday’s match, earning his 200th cap for the Argentine senior national team. Scaloni made clear that Messi remains an irreplaceable core of the side’s title defense bid.

“There’s nothing negative to say,” Scaloni said. “He’s always been there, and he’s essential for us. He’s going to remain that way.”

Messi mania has already fully taken over Kansas City, with fans traveling from across the region to catch a glimpse of the star ahead of kickoff. Tapash Chakraborty, a 57-year-old engineering firm owner, set up at a local downtown bar 24 hours before the match, hoping to meet Messi ahead of the game. Chakraborty, who has a ticket for Tuesday’s clash, put it simply: “Messi is Messi. He is the god of football.”

Chakraborty is far from alone. Messi’s famous No. 10 is everywhere across the city, emblazoned on everything from vintage Barcelona jerseys to current Inter Miami kits to Argentina national team shirts. Michelle Lemmon, a former college soccer player, drove 160 miles from her home in Kirksville, Missouri, to Kansas City with her four children to celebrate her 42nd birthday, drawn by the chance to see Messi play. Though Lemmon will cheer for the U.S. throughout the tournament, she says her dream final would be a matchup between the U.S. and Argentina.

“I’m nervous that this might be his last World Cup, so we’re very excited,” Lemmon said. “Honored that they chose Kansas City as their home base. To have the 2022 World Cup champions here, you know, it’s amazing. It’s hard. You’ve got to like him.”

A win for Argentina in this tournament would not only extend Messi’s legacy — it would tie him even closer to the only other name consistently mentioned alongside him in the GOAT debate: Brazilian legend Pele. Only two nations in history have successfully defended a World Cup title: Italy, which won back-to-back tournaments in the 1930s, and Brazil, which repeated as champions in 1962 even after Pele suffered an early tournament injury. France came close to repeating in 2022, but Argentina defeated Les Blues in a penalty shootout in Qatar to claim the trophy.

Nicolas Otamendi, Messi’s longtime defensive partner for Argentina, says the memory of that iconic Qatar win continues to fuel the team through this tournament. “What happened back in Qatar was just amazing. The whole country united,” Otamendi recalled. “We have that engraved in our minds, and it’s just injected us with the strength to keep trying. There’s no relaxing. We need to keep working with that level of humility that is required in these types of competitions.”

Otamendi added that Messi’s quiet competitiveness and dedication have set the tone for the entire squad. Describing Messi as a “simple man that just focuses on training,” Otamendi noted: “He’s also a competitive animal. You want to be there with him, supporting him, serving him, and laughing our hearts out all the time. As I’ve said, when the ball is rolling, that’s when you need to press, unite and come together as a family on the pitch.”

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – In an intriguing Group H opening match at the Hard Rock Stadium on Monday, Saudi Arabia and Uruguay left everything on the pitch before splitting points with a 1-1 draw, a result that set the tone for an unpredictable group stage following another shock result elsewhere in the bracket.

Uncertainty clouded the prospects of soccer superstar Neymar making his World Cup debut on Monday, as the Brazilian forward underwent a new round of medical assessments for a lingering right leg injury that has kept him sidelined for months.

Initial optimism had circulated within the Brazil camp that the 34-year-old would rejoin full team training on Monday. Instead, the veteran attacker skipped group sessions and traveled to a specialized sports clinic to complete updated scans on his injured right calf. The Brazilian Football Confederation has not yet released any official statement on the outcomes of these tests, leaving fans and analysts guessing about his availability for the tournament.

Neymar, who is competing in his fourth World Cup, has not played competitive soccer since picking up the injury during a club match with Santos on May 17. Since Brazil’s five-time World Cup champions set up their pre-tournament training base in Morristown, New Jersey, the star playmaker has not taken part in a single full team training session. His first potential chance to take the pitch comes this Friday, when Brazil faces off against Haiti in Philadelphia.

The question of Neymar’s return has grown far more pressing for Brazil following a underwhelming 1-1 draw against Morocco in the team’s tournament opening match on Saturday. Though Neymar could not take the field at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, he still drew crowds and attention on the sidelines, greeting high-profile spectators including rapper Travis Scott and seven-time NFL Super Bowl champion Tom Brady before kickoff.

Brazil’s toothless attacking performance against Morocco immediately reignited calls from fans and pundits alike for Neymar’s experienced playmaking presence in the starting lineup. However, the star’s inclusion in the World Cup squad has already sparked fierce public debate across Brazil, ever since new head coach Carlo Ancelotti named him to the roster. Supporters argue that the veteran, who made his World Cup debut on home soil back in 2014, still offers unmatched creativity and leadership that can lift Brazil to a sixth title. Critics, by contrast, claim Neymar is past his athletic peak and that his spot in the squad should have gone to a younger, fit player who could contribute earlier in the tournament.

Brazil’s medical team is reportedly targeting a full recovery for Neymar in time for the tournament’s knockout stage, according to local Brazilian media reports. For now, the nation waits for official test results to clarify when their biggest star will finally step onto the World Cup pitch.

The 2026 expanded 48-team FIFA World Cup, co-hosted across the United States, Canada and Mexico, kicked off its second full matchday on June 16 with a slate of games headlined by two historic defending title bids, a shocking underdog draw, and a collection of long-awaited returns to the global soccer stage.

All eyes will fall on Kansas City, Missouri, when Argentina takes on Algeria in its opening group stage match – a contest that marks the start of the South American side’s push to become the first nation in 62 years to win back-to-back World Cup titles. For Argentine talisman Lionel Messi, this tournament is widely expected to be his final appearance on international soccer’s biggest stage. The 36-year-old generational talent, who will turn 39 later this month, finally claimed the one major honor missing from his legendary career when Argentina lifted the trophy in Qatar 2022, and now he is chasing a unique piece of history that has not been claimed since Brazil’s 1962 triumph.

Messi is also within striking distance of another all-time record: he needs just four more World Cup goals to surpass Miroslav Klose’s standing mark of 16. However, the Inter Miami star has carried visible physical fatigue into the tournament, after a hamstring strain forced an early substitution in his final club match before the World Cup. To maximize his fitness for what is being called his final World Cup hurrah, Messi sat out Argentina’s pre-tournament friendly against Honduras, prioritizing full health for his opening match against Algeria. Argentina head coach Lionel Scaloni has already framed the opening contest as an important but not decisive fixture for the defending champions.

Later the same afternoon in East Rutherford, New Jersey, another pre-tournament co-favorite France will open its 2026 campaign against Senegal, chasing its third World Cup title and second championship in the last three tournaments. Didier Deschamps’ side claimed the 2018 trophy in Russia, before falling to Argentina in a penalty shootout in the 2022 Qatar final, bringing Les Bleus into this tournament with a star-studded roster that includes Kylian Mbappé, Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembélé, and breakout 19-year-old talent Désiré Doué. Mbappé currently sits one international goal short of Olivier Giroud’s all-time France record of 56, though the 2024 Real Madrid transfer has faced consistent criticism in recent months for what pundits call a lack of defensive work rate.

History also adds extra stakes to this opening match: as the defending 1998 champions entering the 2002 World Cup, France suffered a shocking opening-round defeat to Senegal that ultimately saw the defending champions eliminated in the group stage. Entering this 2026 contest, France is listed as a heavy betting favorite, but that 2002 upset still looms over the fixture.

Before the two heavyweight favorites kick off their campaigns, the tournament already delivered one of its most surprising results on matchday one, when first-time World Cup qualifiers Cape Verde held pre-tournament favorite Spain to a scoreless draw, weathering an unrelenting Spanish attack to claim a historic point. Spanish coaches had planned to rotate key recovering stars in what was widely projected to be a lopsided rout, but Cape Verde’s squad defied all expectations, anchored by a legendary performance from 40-year-old goalkeeper Vozinha. The veteran shot-stopper turned away multiple high-quality chances from Spain, who recorded 27 total shots on the night, and was left in tears after his heroic performance.

The gap in resources between the two sides makes the result even more remarkable: per Transfer Markt, Spain’s 17-year-old wunderkind Yamine Lamal holds a market value of 200 million euros, while star midfielder Pedri is valued at 150 million euros. By comparison, Vozinha’s total market value sits at just 50,000 euros. Cape Verde also holds a unique place in World Cup demographics: the archipelago nation off West Africa is the third-smallest country to ever qualify for the men’s World Cup, with a total population of just 525,000, compared to Spain’s 47 million residents.

The June 16 slate also includes two other opening group stage fixtures, each with their own historic backstories. In Foxborough, Massachusetts, Norway will kick off its first World Cup appearance since 1998 against Iraq, entering the tournament as long shots but boasting one of the world’s most dangerous strikers in Erling Haaland. The 25-year-old Manchester City superstar scored 16 goals in European qualifying to single-handedly drag Norway back to the global stage after nearly three decades of absence. The side went viral pre-tournament for a viral viral photoshoot titled “The Vikings are Coming”, where players dressed in traditional Viking garb and posed alongside three longships on a Norwegian fjord, captured by British photographer David Yarrow. Haaland, known for his iconic long hair, fully leaned into the bit, and enters this tournament primed to become the face of the 2026 World Cup.

Closing out the day’s action in Santa Clara, California, Austria will face first-time qualifiers Jordan in Group J. Austria’s return to the World Cup after a 28-year absence is largely credited to manager Ralf Rangnick, who turned down a coveted job offer from Bayern Munich to continue leading the national side’s rebuild, a decision that has paid off with a spot in the tournament. After winning their group at Euro 2024 before falling to Turkey, Austria secured their qualifying group to book their spot in the 48-team field, and are now targeting their first knockout stage appearance since 1982. Jordan, making their first ever World Cup appearance, will be without their top goalscorer Yazan Alnemat, who scored eight qualifying goals but suffered a torn ACL at the Arab Cup last December that ruled him out of the tournament.

Full broadcast details for all June 16 matches, airing across U.S. networks: France vs. Senegal kicks off at 3 p.m. EDT in East Rutherford, broadcast on Fox, Telemundo and Peacock; Iraq vs. Norway follows at 6 p.m. EDT in Foxborough, also airing on Fox, Telemundo and Peacock; Argentina vs. Algeria kicks off at 9 p.m. EDT in Kansas City on FS1, Telemundo and Peacock; and Austria vs. Jordan closes the day at midnight EDT in Santa Clara, airing on FS1, Telemundo and Peacock.

KANSAS CITY, Missouri — As reigning World Cup champions, Argentina head into their 2026 tournament opening clash with Algeria on Tuesday brimming with quiet confidence, but carrying hard-won perspective from their dramatic 2022 Qatar run that proved a rocky start does not define a team’s entire campaign. Four years ago, La Albiceleste suffered one of the most shocking opening-match upsets in World Cup history, falling to Saudi Arabia in their group stage opener. Rather than crumbling, the side rallied, clinching wins against Mexico and Poland to advance, outlasted the Netherlands in a tense penalty shootout in the quarterfinals, and ultimately secured their third world title with another dramatic penalty victory over France.

Speaking to reporters the day before kickoff at Arrowhead Stadium, head coach Lionel Scaloni emphasized that while the opening match carries importance, it will not make or break Argentina’s title defense bid. “We’ve got the experience of the last World Cup to draw from,” Scaloni said via an interpreter. “So this first match is not critical. It matters, but the tournament doesn’t end after 90 minutes on opening day.”

Only two nations in World Cup history have successfully defended their title: Italy in 1938 and Brazil in 1962, a statistic that adds extra weight to Argentina’s historic bid this year. Despite the pressure, Scaloni said the side has entered the tournament in peak form. “We’re happy, assured and confident,” he added. “We’re here at a very good moment heading into the opener.”

While Scaloni confirmed he would not finalize his starting lineup until after Monday’s final training session, he delivered largely positive injury updates for the star-studded squad. A handful of key players, including eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi, Manchester City striker Julian Alvarez, Real Madrid prospect Nico Paz, and starting goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez, have all dealt with minor fitness issues in the lead-up to the tournament. Martinez is set to start despite a fractured ring finger, while Alvarez has recovered fully from an ankle injury to be available for selection. “We’ve taken excellent care of Julian, and he arrives in optimal condition,” Scaloni said. “His recovery has been huge for us, because he’s a key attacking option for tomorrow.” Only Paz remains sidelined with a lingering knee injury, and Scaloni noted that no other player is dealing with a serious injury. The only unresolved fitness question surrounds defender Nicolas Tagliafico, who has been managing a small muscle tear in his left calf.

Messi, who is set to make his historic sixth World Cup appearance at 38 years old, has silenced any concerns over his mild hamstring strain. The forward has not spoken to the media since arriving at Argentina’s Kansas City base camp two weeks ago, but on-pitch glimpses from training have shown the legend looking sharp and relaxed. He eased worries last week when he logged 20 minutes of game time and found the back of the net in a warm-up friendly against Iceland. Scaloni noted that Messi’s presence extends far beyond the pitch for the global tournament. “Not only Argentinians — people across the entire world want to see him play,” Scaloni said. “Everybody wants to see him out on the pitch, because he means so much to fans not just from our country, but to supporters everywhere.”

The Argentine camp also took a key lesson from the day’s earlier 2026 World Cup action, when heavily favored Spain was held to a surprise scoreless draw by underdog Cape Verde in one of the first big upsets of the expanded 48-team tournament. Scaloni and defender Nicolas Otamendi learned of the result while traveling to Arrowhead Stadium for their pre-match press conference, and the outcome served as a stark warning that no opponent can be overlooked in the expanded tournament format. “There are no easy rivals here,” Scaloni said. “Every team earned their place at this World Cup, and we are fully focused on Algeria. They have top-quality players across the pitch, and this will be a great test for us — not the definitive one, but a test we have to be ready for.”

Algeria’s coaching staff and players have also taken note of Cape Verde’s result, and are embracing their underdog status heading into the matchup. “Of course we are not favored to win this match,” Algeria head coach Vladimir Petkovic acknowledged. “But as we’ve already seen at this World Cup, upsets can happen, and we are going to do everything we can to pull one off tomorrow.”

After both sides dealt with severe weather disruptions in the lead-up to the match — including two tornado warnings for Argentina’s camp and severe storms at Algeria’s training base in nearby Lawrence, Kansas, plus heat indexes nearing 100 degrees Fahrenheit at points — the forecast for Tuesday night’s kickoff is nearly ideal. Game time is set for 8 p.m. local time, with temperatures expected to hover around 80 degrees Fahrenheit (27 degrees Celsius) and almost no chance of rain interrupting play.