28/06/2026 03:04 - Deportes
The Argentina National Team takes the field this Saturday, June 27 at 23:00 local time (Argentina Time, UTC-3) at Dallas Stadium in the United States for the third round of Group J at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Already qualified as group leaders with 6 points and a +5 goal difference, Lionel Scaloni's squad faces Jordan with heavy rotations, eyeing their Round of 16 match against Cape Verde.
Head Coach: Lionel Scaloni
Head Coach: Jamal Sellami
🏟️ Stadium: Dallas, United States
👨⚖️ Referee: István Kovács (Romania)
📺 Broadcast: Telefe (commentary by Pablo Giralt and Juan Pablo Varsky - Argentina's leading sports commentators)
Lionel Messi, who turned 39 years old on June 24, will start as a substitute in a World Cup match for the first time since the quarterfinals of Germany 2006. Argentina's legendary captain ends his streak of 24 consecutive World Cup starts, a record that surpassed even Italian legend Paolo Maldini (23). Messi is expected to see playing time in the second half.
The new captain for this match is Nicolás Otamendi, the veteran defender playing his third World Cup with the national team.
Four players will make their first-ever World Cup appearance:
Also potentially debuting from the bench: Valentín Barco and José Manuel "Flaco" López.
Scaloni repeats the Palacios-Paredes-Lo Celso midfield trio, the same lineup from his first match as Argentina's head coach on September 8, 2018, when Argentina defeated Guatemala 3-0 in a friendly played in Los Angeles.
A sentimental nod from the Argentine coach to his beginnings.
Jordan, a Middle Eastern nation of 11 million inhabitants, is playing in its first-ever World Cup. Already eliminated with zero points after losses to Austria (3-1) and Algeria (2-1), the team aims for a historic achievement: earning at least one point against the reigning world champions.
Their national team, known as "Al-Nashama" (The Brave Ones), reached the semifinals of the 2023 AFC Asian Cup, their best-ever performance in continental competitions.
📅 Next opponent: Cape Verde
📅 Date: Friday, July 3, 2026
⏰ Time: 19:00 Argentina Time (UTC-3)
🏟️ Stadium: Hard Rock Stadium, Miami
🏆 Stage: Round of 16
📊 Cape Verde: 2nd in Group H with 3 points
📺 Broadcast: DGO, Disney+, Telefe, TV Pública, TyC Sports
| Match | Result | Scorers |
|---|---|---|
| Argentina vs Algeria | 3-0 | Messi (3) |
| Argentina vs Austria | 2-0 | Messi (2) |
| Argentina vs Jordan | In progress | - |
Messi is the all-time World Cup top scorer with 18 goals.
📡 Multi-platform Coverage: In addition to Telefe's television broadcast (Argentina's most-watched free-to-air channel), you can follow the match at MiTelefe.com with free digital coverage.
Source: MiTelefe
Alfredo S. Quiroga
