FIFA WC Semifinal: Second semi-final will be played today, Messi’s army will face England after 24 years; Know who has the upper hand?

FIFA World Cup Semifinal 2026: Spain has confirmed its place in the final of the 2026 FIFA World Cup by defeating France 2-0 in the first semi-final. Now the teams of England and Argentina will face each other in the second semi-final of the tournament. This great match between two giants of football will be played at Atlanta Stadium on Thursday, July 16 (12:30 pm Indian time).

The performance of both the teams so far in the tournament has been amazing. Defending champion Argentina defeated Algeria, Austria and Jordan in the group stage. After this, in the knockout round, they defeated Cape Verde in the round of 32 and Egypt in the round of 16. By defeating Switzerland in the quarter-finals, they booked their ticket to the semi-finals.

On the other hand, England registered spectacular wins against Croatia, Ghana and Panama in the group stage. After this they defeated DR Congo in the Round of 32 and Mexico in the Round of 16. England entered the semi-finals by defeating a strong Norwegian team in the quarter-finals.

historical rivalry

Football fans are once again going to see the most famous and oldest rivalry in the history of the World Cup. In the history of the World Cup, these two teams have clashed 5 times so far, in which England has had the upper hand. England has won 3 matches, while Argentina had to be content with 2 wins. However, if we talk only about knockout matches, then both have come face to face 3 times, in which Argentina has won twice and England has won only once.

The first meeting between the two teams in the World Cup took place in 1962, where England won 3-1 in the group stage. The last time both the teams met was in the group stage of the 2002 World Cup, which England won 1-0. Now after a long wait of 24 years, these two teams will face each other for the sixth time in the World Cup.

Overall Head-to-Head

If we talk about total international football, so far 14 matches have been played between the two countries. Here too England has the upper hand. England has won 6 matches, while Argentina has won 3 matches and 5 matches have been drawn. But when it comes to titles, Argentina is far ahead. Argentina has kissed the World Cup trophy three times (1978, 1986 and 2022), whereas England has become champion only once (in 1966).

Both face each other in the World Cup

Messi’s first match against England

Lionel Messi has played more than 200 matches for his country. He is the second player in the world to play every World Cup since 2006. But the surprising thing is that he has never played any match against England in his long career. That is why this semi-final match is going to be very special. Messi is currently leading the race for the Golden Boot by scoring 8 goals.

Argentina’s key players

39 year old Lionel Messi remains Argentina’s biggest strength in this tournament. Till the Round of 16, Messi scored a goal in every match and made a new record by taking his total number of goals in the World Cup to 21. Apart from Messi, Lautaro Martínez, Lisandro Martínez, Enzo Fernández and Julian Alvarez are also very important players of the team.

England’s key players

Captain Harry Kane and attacking midfielder Jude Bellingham have contributed equally to England’s victory, both have scored 6-6 goals so far. While Harry Kane scored a lot of goals in the group stage, Bellingham took command of the team in the knockout matches. Anthony Gordon and Bukayo Saka have strengthened England’s attack by giving 3 assists each, while Elliot Anderson and Mark Guehi have also impressed everyone with their strong performances.

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