For a long time, the story felt complete. Lionel Messi lifting the World Cup in 2022 looked like the perfect ending, the one moment that tied everything together. But football rarely stays still, and now a new question has taken over. Can he go again, and can Argentina actually defend their title.
For the Argentina national football team, this isn’t just another tournament. It’s about handling a completely different kind of pressure. They are no longer chasing history, they are the ones everyone else is aiming for. That shift alone changes everything about how a World Cup campaign unfolds.
At the FIFA World Cup 2026, Argentina find themselves in Group J with Algeria national football team, Austria national football team, and Jordan national football team. It’s a group they would expect to come through, but not one they can take lightly. Algeria bring physicality and unpredictability, Austria are structured and disciplined, while Jordan will see this as a chance to make a statement. On paper, Argentina are ahead, but World Cups are rarely that simple.
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Lionel Messi wore the No. 10 shirt for the first time with Argentina 17-years-ago today.#FIFAWorldCup pic.twitter.com/WxQFZGdACi
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) March 28, 2026
Can Lionel Messi lead one more run
Lionel Messi isn’t expected to do everything anymore, and that might actually work in Argentina’s favour. What he still offers is control in key moments, the ability to slow things down or speed them up, and that instinct to produce something decisive when it matters. Even now, he’s the player the team looks toward when games get tight.
The difference this time is the support around him. Argentina are no longer built around one player carrying everything. The squad has grown into a more complete unit, with players capable of stepping up across the pitch. That makes them harder to read and less dependent on individual brilliance.
There’s also the mindset. Winning once changes how a team approaches these tournaments. They’ve been through the pressure, the knockout rounds, the fine margins. That experience stays with you.
Still, defending a World Cup is one of the toughest challenges in the sport. Every opponent raises their level, and every mistake gets punished. Argentina won’t catch anyone off guard this time.
So can it happen again. Maybe. But if it does, it will look different. Not just a story about Lionel Messi, but about a team that learned how to win and found a way to do it all over again.
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