England vs. Argentina Top Storylines, Odds, Live Stream for World Cup 2026 Semifinal

England and Argentina renew their World Cup rivalry in Wednesday's semifinal in Atlanta.

The two sides previously met five times in the World Cup. England owns a 3-2 advantage in the series.

None of the current players on either roster have experienced the history of the matchup. The last time the two nations faced each other at a World Cup was in 2002.

The 2026 matchup carries a ton of star power like the previous meetings had with Diego Maradona, David Beckham, Mario Kempes, Gary Lineker and many others.

Lionel Messi and Harry Kane will be front and center under the spotlight at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Messi and Argentina created a tough path for themselves with three dodgy performances. That could make them vulnerable against England.

England needs to find a way to contain a superstar for the second straight round after it held Erling Haaland without a goal in the quarterfinals.

Match Info and Odds

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Date: Wednesday, July 15

Start Time: 3 p.m. ET

TV: Fox

Live Stream: Fox One and FoxSports.com

Odds via FanDuel Sportsbook:

To Qualify for Next Round: England (-128; bet $128 to win $100); Argentina (+110; bet $100 to win $110)

90-Minute Money Line: England (+165); Argentina (+200); Draw (+190)

Argentina Must Be Better Than Previous Three Knockout Round Matches

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Argentina's lived a charmed life in the knockout round.

The Albiceleste escaped from an upset bid by Cape Verde in the round of 32, produced a miracle comeback against Egypt in the round of 16 and had some help from a red card versus Switzerland in the quarterfinals.

Argentina's easily looked the worst among the four semifinalists, but yet somehow, it has found a way to survive and advance.

The reigning World Cup champion needs a much cleaner performance on Wednesday against an England side that is disciplined and is capable of limiting Lionel Messi's time in front of goal.

England did its best to contain Erling Haaland in the quarterfinals and that resulted in a victory.

Messi hasn't been Argentina's problem. In fact, he's been the fixer-upper that shows up to clean up the mess.

Argentina has to be sharper with how it moves the ball to create chances.

Defensively, it has to close the gaps that have allowed lesser opponents to score. Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham and Co. will take better advantage of mistakes and could bury Argentina in a two-or-three goal hole.

Argentina is certainly capable of matching England's level, but that needs to be on display from the start. It can't appear in the 70th minute to pull it through to the next round again.

How Will England Contain Lionel Messi?

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England has one of the most pragmatic managers in the world in Thomas Tuchel.

Tuchel is quite fine with having his team limit scoring chances and play to a 1-0, 1-1-type result.

England took that approach in the Norway quarterfinal before Norway scored the opener in the 36th minute.

The Three Lions are expected to have more of the ball, which right away cuts into the time Messi has in possession. Argentina has no problem sitting back and bit and striking in transition.

England needs to possess the ball with a purpose and work into the gaps that the Argentina defense presents. It may take a few minutes to work into the game, but Elliott Anderson and Declan Rice will be vital in making in the quick-touch passes in the center of the park.

Anderson and Rice will also be key in slowing down Messi's impact because of how involved they will be in possession.

When Messi does have the ball, England needs to crowd him to make sure he doesn't have time to gain momentum with the ball and send the ball towards the net.

Messi presents a much different challenge for the England defense compared to Haaland. Haaland is a more direct player and doesn't need a ton of time on the ball, while Messi thrives with the ball at his feet.

England needs to let the supporting cast around Messi beat it. That can be a challenging task for Argentina at times since no one else on its roster has more than two goals in the tournament.