Heavyweights Argentina and France Start World Cup Quests
Argentina and France begin title defenses with Messi and Mbappé leading squads that include 15 Argentina players from the 2022 champions.
- On Tuesday, Lionel Messi's Argentina and Kylian Mbappe's France launched their 2026 World Cup campaigns, the two nations that contested the dramatic 2022 final in Qatar.
- Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni aims to defend the 2022 title, while France faces Senegal in New Jersey hoping to avoid the 2002 opening-day loss that triggered an early group-phase exit.
- Messi, 38, proved his fitness by scoring in a warm-up against Iceland last week despite a late May hamstring injury. Teammate Nicolas Otamendi called him a "competitive animal."
- Leading an attack with Ousmane Dembele and Michael Olise, France coach Didier Deschamps warned players to manage emotions, cautioning that "some players might tense up with the atmosphere."
- Argentina seeks to repeat as champions, a feat unachieved since Brazil in 1962, while France has reached four finals in seven World Cups, winning two.
15 Articles
15 Articles
Radio France Internationale
Heavyweights Argentina and France start World Cup quests
Here's who's playing at FIFA World Cup 2026 TODAY
FIFA World Cup 2026 continues on Tuesday, 16 June with two of the tournament favourites, France and Argentina, finally entering the fray as Group I and Group J begin their campaigns. With several groups already underway, attention now turns to a packed day of action featuring eight nations hoping to make an early statement in their quest for World Cup glory. READ | Hugo Broos on verge of making Bafana history – and saying goodbye Standout fixtur…
The two teams that won the last World Cups will make their debut today at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, on a day that will also serve to open Group I and Group J of the tournament.
Finalists of 2022, the teams are again led by Mbappé and Messi; the day has three more matches
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 42% of the sources lean Right
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
