Four nations made debuts at the 2026 World Cup, with Cape Verde, Curacao, Jordan and Uzbekistan gracing the grandest stage in international football for the first time. It was the tournament with the most newcomers since 2006 and Cape Verde achieved the feat of ending a 16-year wait for a debutant to reach the knockout stages, before succumbing to Lionel Messi's Argentina in a classic.
The group stage of the 2026 World Cup came to a dramatic conclusion on Saturday, as Austria scored a 96th-minute equaliser against Algeria to qualify for the knockout stage while simultaneously eliminating Iran, who had been set to progress as one of the tournament's third-placed finishers. Elsewhere, Lionel Messi came off the bench to help Argentina maintain their 100 percent winning record with a 3-1 victory over Jordan and, in doing so, the No.10 extended his record-breaking goals tally at the finals to 19.
Iran captain Mehdi Taremi has criticised FIFA and president Gianni Infantino over what he described as a "disaster" World Cup, accusing organisers of failing to resolve ongoing logistical and visa issues. Head coach Amir Ghalenoei also called on FIFA to stand up to the tournament hosts after claiming his side had been treated unfairly.
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