Argentina
Coach
Lionel Scaloni
World Cup Appearances
18
Best Finish
Winners (1978, 1986, 2022)
Complete Team Guide
Argentina's World Cup 2026 squad carries the weight of back-to-back titles and three stories that will define their tournament narrative: Messi at 38 navigates a hamstring overload scare that left him hobbling off in Inter Miami's most recent game; Paulo Dybala and Ángel Di María are both absent, severing the last link to the Qatar 2022 fantasy front line; and Giuliano Simeone, son of Atlético Madrid manager Diego, travels to the World Cup alongside five of his club teammates.
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Road to 2026
Argentina arrive at World Cup 2026 as reigning champions after again proving their edge in South American qualifying. FIFA confirmed they were the first CONMEBOL side to seal qualification, and Lionel Scaloni still has the core that won in Qatar alongside a younger layer led by Julián Alvarez, Enzo Fernández and Alexis Mac Allister.
Key Players
Lionel Messi
Forward
Inter Miami
Messi remains the emotional and technical centre of the side, and FIFA's South American qualifying overview listed him as the section's top scorer with eight goals.
Julián Alvarez
Forward
Atlético Madrid
Alvarez gives Argentina relentless running, pressing and finishing, and he now enters the tournament as one of the squad's most complete attackers.
Lautaro Martínez
Forward
Inter Milan
Inter's captain offers penalty-box finishing and a different profile to Alvarez, giving Scaloni a genuine rotation luxury at centre-forward.
Alexis Mac Allister
Midfielder
Liverpool
Mac Allister is the midfielder who knits the team together, especially when Argentina want to control tempo against organised opponents.
Enzo Fernández
Midfielder
Chelsea
Enzo's passing range and aggressiveness out of possession still make him central to how Argentina progress the ball through midfield.
Goalkeepers
Emiliano Martínez
Aston Villa
Gerónimo Rulli
Marseille
Juan Musso
Atlético Madrid
Defenders
Gonzalo Montiel
River Plate
Nahuel Molina
Atlético Madrid
Lisandro Martínez
Manchester United
Nicolás Otamendi
Benfica
Leonardo Balerdi
Marseille
Cristian Romero
Tottenham
Facundo Medina
Marseille
Nicolás Tagliafico
Lyon
Midfielders
Leandro Paredes
Boca Juniors
Rodrigo De Paul
Inter Miami
Exequiel Palacios
Bayer Leverkusen
Enzo Fernández
Chelsea
Alexis Mac Allister
Liverpool
Giovani Lo Celso
Real Betis
Valentín Barco
Strasbourg
Attackers
Lionel Messi
Inter Miami
Nico Paz
Como
Thiago Almada
Atlético Madrid
Nicolás González
Atlético Madrid
Giuliano Simeone
Atlético Madrid
Lautaro Martínez
Internazionale
Jose Manuel López
Palmeiras
Julián Álvarez
Atlético Madrid
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