Algeria vs Austria FIFA World Cup 2026 Preview: Everything you need to know

World Cup - Grp. J

Kansas City Stadium

Algeria vs Austria will kick off on 27 Jun 2026 at 22:00 EST.

Match context

It's a straight shootout for a guaranteed round of 32 berth between Algeria and Austria in World Cup Group J, with Argentina already sealing top spot in the section.

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The World Cup story so far

Algeria have stormed back to beat Jordan 2-1 and eliminate the World Cup debutants with a match to spare thanks to second-half goals ⁠from substitute Nadhir Benbouali and Amine Gouiri.

Benbouali’s header cancelled out Nizar Al-Rashdan’s first-half opener, and Gouiri poked home in a goalmouth scramble eight minutes from time to keep Algeria’s knockout hopes alive after a 3-0 loss ⁠to Argentina. Legendary figure Riyad Mahrez was on the bench against the Argentines but started the win over Jordan and should keep his place for this crunch clash.

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Austria were on the wrong end of a Lionel Messi masterclass on matchday 2, losing 2-0 to defending champions Argentina. They beat Jordan 3-1 on matchday 1, so their qualification hopes remain in their own hands. The losers of this match will likely get into the round of 32 as a lucky loser, but nobody wants to be playing that sort of lottery at this stage. Austria's goal difference is superior to Algeria's, so a draw would send them through. Marcel Sabitzer made his 100th Austria appearance against Argentina, and the Dortmund creative midfielder will be a pivotal figure if Austria is to forge further into the tournament.

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Likely XIs

Algeria: Zidane; Belghali, Mandi, Bensebaini, Ait Nouri; Boudaoui, Bentaleb; Hadj Moussa, Maza, Chaibi; Gouiri.

Austria: Schlager; Posch, Danso, Alaba, Laimer; Seiwald, Schlager; Schmid, Wanner, Sabitzer; Gregoritsch.

Algeria's 26-man squad

Goalkeepers: Oussama ​Benbot (USM Alger), Melvin Masstil (Stade Nyonnais), Luca Zidane (Granada)

Defenders: Achraf Abada (USM Alger), Rayan Ait-Nouri (Manchester City), Zinedine Belaid (JS Kabylie), Rafik ⁠Belghali (Verona), Ramy Bensebaini (Borussia Dortmund), Samir Chergui (Paris FC), Jaouen Hadjam (Young Boys Bern), Aissa ⁠Mandi (Lille), Mohamed Amine Tougai (Esperance)

Midfielders: Houssem Aouar (Al-Ittihad), Nabil Bentaleb (Lille), Hicham Boudaoui (Nice), Fares Chaibi (Eintracht Frankfurt), Ibrahim Maza (Bayer Leverkusen), Yassine ‌Titraoui (Charleroi), Ramiz Zerrouki (Twente)

Forwards: Mohamed Amine Amoura (Wolfsburg), Nadir Benbouali (Gyori ETO), ‌Adil Boulbina (Al-Duhail), Fares Ghedjemis (Frosinone), Amine Gouiri (Marseille), Riyad Mahrez (Al-Ahli), Anis Hadj Moussa (Feyenoord).

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Austria's 26-man squad

Goalkeepers: Patrick Pentz (Brondby), Alexander Schlager (RB Salzburg), Florian Wiegele (Viktoria Pilsen)

Defenders: David Affengruber (Elche), David Alaba (Real Madrid), Kevin Danso (Tottenham), Marco Friedl (Werder Bremen), Philipp Lienhart (Freiburg), Phillipp Mwene (Mainz), Stefan Posch (Mainz), Alexander Prass (Hoffenheim), Michael Svoboda (Venezia)

Midfielders: Christoph Baumgartner (RB Leipzig), Carney Chukwuemeka (Borussia Dortmund), Florian Grillitsch (Braga), Konrad Laimer (Bayern Munich), Marcel Sabitzer (Borussia Dortmund), Xaver Schlager (RB Leipzig), Romano Schmid (Werder Bremen), Alessandro Schopf (RZ Pellets WAC), Nicolas Seiwald (RB Leipzig), Paul Wanner (PSV Eindhoven), Patrick Wimmer (Wolfsburg)

Forwards: Marko Arnautovic (Red Star Belgrade), Michael Gregoritsch (Augsburg), Sasa Kalajdzic (LASK).

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Team news & squads

Algeria vs Austria Probable lineups

Algeria

ALG

Formation

Austria

AUT

Austria

AUT

Manager

• V. Petkovic

Algeria are managed by Vladimir Petkovic. No injuries or suspensions have been confirmed ahead of the match, and no probable starting lineup has been released. Further team news will be added closer to kick-off.

Austria are managed by Ralf Rangnick. As with Algeria, no injury or suspension information is currently available and no projected XI has been confirmed. Updates will follow as the match approaches.

Form

Algeria have won three of their last five matches, drawing one and losing one. Their most recent result was a 2-1 victory over Jordan on June 23, a comeback win sealed by Amine Gouiri's late strike. Prior to that, they suffered a 3-0 defeat to Argentina on Matchday 1. In their pre-tournament run, Algeria beat Bolivia 4-0 and defeated the Netherlands 1-0. They also drew 0-0 with Uruguay in March. Across those five matches, Algeria scored eight goals and conceded four.

Austria have won three of their last five, losing one and winning one. Their most recent outing ended in a 2-0 defeat to Argentina on June 22, with Lionel Messi scoring twice in Dallas. Before that, Austria beat Jordan 3-1 on Matchday 1 for their first World Cup victory since 1990. In pre-tournament friendlies, they beat Tunisia 1-0 and the Republic of Korea 1-0, and recorded a 5-1 demolition of Ghana in March. Austria scored nine goals and conceded three across those five fixtures.

Head-to-Head Record

No head-to-head data is available for recent meetings between Algeria and Austria. This fixture at Kansas City Stadium represents the most current data point available, and updates will be added if further historical information becomes available.

Standings

In Group J, Austria currently sit second and Algeria third ahead of this decisive Matchday 3 fixture.