Lionel Messi and Argentina just broke England’s heart in Atlanta
Atlanta’s 2026 FIFA World Cup finale belonged to Lionel Messi.
In his first international meeting with England, Messi had a pair of assists on two late-match daggers that pierced through the hearts of Three Lions’ players and supporters.
In front of another capacity crowd of 68,239, La Albiceleste booked a ticket to Sunday’s World Cup final against Spain with 2-1 victory.
It was a World Cup meeting that lived up to all of the prematch hype, bad blood and history we’ve come to expect from these two nations. One might be excused for confusing the haze setting near Atlanta Stadium’s rafters with steam emanating from the contentious match below.
Well, it took all of two minutes for those rivalry vibes to set in. That is, unless you count Argentina fans chanting over the playing of England’s national them before the match.
After losing the ball to England’s Elliot Anderson, Messi was called for a foul. Anderson was promptly greeted with a hard foul from Enzo Fernandez, which sparked an exchange of words and shoves between both teams.
The beef remained throughout the first half that was short on goals and ended 0-0. That changed in the 55th minute.
England struck first, off the boot of Anthony Gordon on a beautiful cross from Morgan Rogers. That feeling of euphoria for Three Lions supporters lasted about 30 minutes.
That’s about when Messi and Co. decided to once again take the late-match heroics path to victory. After coming from behind 2-0 in their round of 16 match against Egypt, Argentina gave England the same treatment.
Fernandez sent a curling beauty into the net from 25 yards out on Messi’s third assist of this World Cup. Tied 1-1.
Argentina knocked on the door with chances for what felt like hours before blowing it all down on a goal from Lautaro Martinez in stoppage time. This one, too, was assisted by Messi, who nabbed another FIFA Man of the Match honor.
Even as Argentina went up and would go on to win 2-1, their supporters had to sweat.
“We always have to have faith. If you don’t suffer, it’s not Argentina,” Emmanuel Castro said.
Carolina Vega and Castro, both 30, traveled to Atlanta Stadium from Argentina for the match. The pair previously attended Argentina’s round of 32 match against Cape Verde. They were also here for the round of 16 against Egypt.
Even thinking about La Albiceleste in the final makes Vega emotional.
“I would cry. I don’t know if you saw the game against Egypt, but it’s about never giving up,” she said.
Castro agreed.
“I can say is that it’s not just this team. It’s not just this group of players. It’s football,” he said. “Football for Argentina is one of the things that unites us and puts our differences aside.”
Ticket prices for Sunday’s final are around $7,800 on third-party resellers, so they won’t make the trip to New Jersey.
For many Argentina fans in attendance, being here in Atlanta to see Messi making another finals run IRL was enough.
“It’s hard to explain, but it’s part of our culture. Following the national team — La Albiceleste — is just what you do,” said Rocio Theas, 35, a Los Angeles resident with Argentine and Mexican roots.
“Being here, surrounded by all these people, is really special.”
Theas got her ticket as a surprise gift from a cousin. “I was like, ‘This is literally a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.’ I couldn’t believe what was happening,” Theas said.
Argentina will face Spain in Sunday’s final at 3 p.m. at New York New Jersey Stadium (in East Rutherford, New Jersey).
Argentina is now 2-0 in World Cup knockout matches at Atlanta Stadium. It’s a return trip for to the final for Messi and La Albiceleste. They won the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar by beating France on penalties. Now, the South Americans will aim to be FIFA’s first back-to-back World Cup champs since Brazil in 1958 and ’62.
For England, the loss means a face-off with France in Saturday’s third place match at 5 p.m. Both games will be broadcast on Fox.
England’s players and fans were hoping to make it back to a World Cup final for the first time in 60 years. After the match, their fans were still grappling with the latest heartbreak.
Supporters such as Sam Lee said he’s had the same England flag hanging outside his bedroom window since he was 5 years old.
For that reason, the now-38-year-old native of England is not proud of his country’s disappointing World Cup exit.
“You can’t be up 1-nil and turn into a turtle,” Lee said.
Lee’s assessment was the result of poor coaching by England manager, Thomas Tuchel. The Three Lions were too passive after dominating possession in the first half.
Newcastle native Jordan Blackmon was also critical of Tuchel’s tactics, adding that England’s lineup wasn’t as strong as their rivals’.
“I just don’t think we had enough quality in terms of players who can make a difference and change a game,” he said noting how past playmakers such as Phil Foden and Cole Palmer were left off this World Cup squad.
“They’re game-changers, and that’s what Argentina had. They had game changers on the field, and that’s what happened,” he Blackmon said.
“It’s a difficult one, but that’s the way it goes.”
As for Atlanta, this marks the end of our run as a World Cup host city. We’ll know after Sunday if Messi’s two come-from-behind classics were part of another championship story.