Messi leads Argentina into semifinal showdown with England

Argentina will meet England in the World Cup semifinal in Atlanta on July 15, with Lionel Messi again at the center of the attack in the tournament’s hardest test so far. The defending champions reached the last four after beating Cabo Verde 3-2, Egypt 3-2 and Switzerland 3-1, and Lionel Scaloni has kept Messi as the organizing force around which Argentina’s decisive moments still turn.

Messi is playing his sixth World Cup, a record for Argentina, in a tournament expanded to 48 teams, 104 matches and 16 host cities across Canada, Mexico and the United States. Scaloni named his 26-player squad on May 28, 2026, with Emiliano Martínez, Cristian Romero, Nicolás Otamendi, Rodrigo De Paul, Alexis Mac Allister, Enzo Fernández and Lautaro Martínez all included as Argentina moved through Group J against Algeria, Austria and Jordan.

That depth has helped Argentina survive a demanding route, but the semifinal against England has sharpened the dependence on Messi that has defined much of the campaign. In the buildup, Scaloni defended his captain and said Messi would remain the best as long as he chose to keep playing, a public backing that underlined how much Argentina still leans on him when matches tighten.

The pressure is heavier because this is a title defense, not a chase. Argentina arrived at the knockout rounds as the reigning champion from Qatar 2022, with the country’s expectations still built around Messi at 37 and still producing the moments that bend games in Argentina’s favor.

Against England, that dependence may be both strength and vulnerability. Messi gives Argentina a proven closer for the biggest stages, but the semifinal in Atlanta will test whether the rest of Scaloni’s side can absorb the load when England closes space and forces the game toward a single decisive moment.