England, Argentina to add another chapter to their long-time rivalry

England and Argentina will face each other in Wednesday's semifinal at the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Atlanta, Georgia, in a fight to determine who joins Spain in the World Cup final on Sunday. 

As long-time rivals, the two sides have met five times at the tournament. The Three Lions won three of them in 1962, 1966 and 2002 while La Albiceleste took two wins in 1986 and 1998. There were multiple tournament classical moments from these fierce clashes, including the "Hand of God" and "Goal of the Century" by Diego Maradona in the quarterfinals of the 1986 edition and David Beckham's red card for a foul on Diego Simeone in the 1998 round of 16.

"I think the players of both countries are very aware of what it means to them – if a fixture provides so many iconic moments, then you cannot say it is just another football match, but as a coach we do exactly that, focus on what we can influence," England manager Thomas Tuchel noted.

The Three Lions finished their six games so far with five wins and one draw, scoring 13 goals and conceding 6. They won by only one goal in all of the three knockout matches.

"I don't feel a burden. We feel the tension and will be nervous but that is normal," Tuchel stressed. "What I like is that I feel the players are really competitive, hungry and excited to play this match."

As the defending champions, Argentina won all six of its previous games, hard fought wins by scoring in the final minutes to edge Cabo Verde, Egypt and Switzerland after progressing from the group stage.

The team netted 17 goals and conceded six. Now its defense will face a strong test from Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham, widely regarded as two of the world's current best attacking players. 

"The team isn't playing as bad as people say. We must have done something right to reach this stage," Scaloni said in response to suggestions his team hasn't been at its best. "I'm grateful to the players. They've led us to three titles and now another semifinal. We're just one step away, and we're going to give it our all to get there."

Argentina won its first World Cup in 1978, lifted the second in 1986 and added the third in 2022. England took the throne for the first and only time in 1966.