Argentina national football team

The first kit ever worn by Argentina, in their official debut against Uruguay in 1902, included a light blue shirt.[32][33] On 2 July 1908, Argentina debuted a shirt with light blue vertical stripes on a white jersey, which they used when they played a side formed of Campeonato Paulista players at Velódromo Paulistano;[34] they used the jersey in an official game against Uruguay on 13 September 1908, and the striped jersey has remained as the definitive kit for Argentina ever since then.[26] The team's away kits have been in dark blue shades, with the colours of shorts and socks varying from time to time.[35]

Argentina has also sported other kits; on 3 June 1919 in Rio de Janeiro, playing against Brazil, Argentina wore a light blue kit, similar to that of Uruguay, out of respect for Roberto Chery, a substitute goalkeeper for Uruguay, who had collapsed and died during a match against Chile at the 1919 South American Championship;[36][37] the game between Argentina and Brazil was organised by the Brazilian Football Confederation for the benefit of Chery's relatives. At the 1958 World Cup, Argentina wore the yellow jersey of Swedish club IFK Malmö against West Germany, as the team had arrived in Sweden without an away kit.

At the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, the then manager, Carlos Bilardo, asked the team's kit supplier, Le Coq Sportif, for lighter blue shirts for their quarter-final against England in three days, but they could not be provided. Then, a member of the coaching staff scoured the shops of Mexico City for 38 plain shirts, which were transformed with an improvised version of the AFA emblem embroidered on the shirts[38] and silvery American football numbers ironed to the backs.[39]

Sporting the makeshift jerseys, Argentina beat England on 22 June, with Diego Maradona scoring his famous "Hand of God goal".[40][41] Afterwards, the shirt became a symbol of the occasion and an important collector's item.[42]

At the 2018 World Cup in Russia, Argentina debuted a black away kit;[43] and at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, they wore a purple away kit in a competitive game for the first time.[44][45]

Argentina has used the logo of the Argentine Football Association as its emblem since it was first worn at the 1958 World Cup in Sweden; the logo was added to the team's jackets, but not the shirts.[38] The emblem was not used on jerseys until 16 November 1976, when Argentina played the Soviet Union at Estadio Monumental. At the beginning, the crest used did not include a laurel wreath,[56] which was first added for the 1982 World Cup.[38]

As a respected and common practice,[57] two stars were added above the crest in 2004, symbolising Argentina's World Cup titles in 1978 and 1986.[56] In 2022, a third star was added after Argentina were crowned world champions for the third time.[58]

The following 26 players were named in the squad for the 2024 Copa América.[61]

Caps and goals are correct as of 26 June 2024, after the match against Chile.

The following players have also been called up for the team in the last twelve months.

*Draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.

*Draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.

Argentina and Brazil have a fierce rivalry which is one of the oldest in South America.[65] Games between the two teams, even those that are only friendly matches, are often marked by notable and controversial incidents. The rivalry has also been referred to as the "Battle of the Americas." FIFA has described it as the "essence of football rivalry".[66] According to CNN, this rivalry ranked second on their top 10 list of international football rivalries—only below the ancient England–Scotland football rivalry.[67]

The rivalry has extended to comparisons between Pelé and Diego Maradona.[68][69] Some of their countrymen also feature regularly in such debates. The next most notable pair are perhaps Garrincha (Brazilian)[70] and Alfredo Di Stéfano (Argentine).[71] The most dominant figures from the two countries in the modern game are Neymar (Brazilian) and Lionel Messi (Argentine). Both Pelé and Maradona have declared Neymar and Messi their respective "successors".[72][73]

With a rivalry stemming from the 1966 World Cup and intensified by the Falklands War of 1982, Argentina and England have had numerous confrontations in World Cup tournaments. Among them was the quarter-final match in 1986, where Diego Maradona scored two goals against England. The first was a handball, but was ruled legal by the referee. The second, scored minutes later, saw Maradona passing five England outfield players before scoring, and is often described as one of, if not the greatest goal in football history.

The nations were paired together in the Round of 16 at the 1998 World Cup, won by Argentina on penalties, and again at the group stage in 2002, England winning 1–0 through a penalty by David Beckham who had been sent off in the tie four years earlier.

Argentina has played Germany in seven FIFA World Cup matches including three FIFA World Cup finals: In 1986 Argentina won 3–2, but in 1990 it was the Germans who were the victors by a 1–0 scoreline.

In 1958 they met for the first time in the group stage, where Argentina suffered a 1–3 loss to defending champions West Germany.[74] In 1966 both again faced each other in the group stage which ended in a scoreless draw.[75] In 2006, they met in the quarter-finals; Argentina lost on penalties after a 1–1 draw, which was followed by a brawl on the pitch involving several players.[76][77] They met again at the same stage in 2010, this time ending with a 4–0 victory for Germany. They played each other for the third consecutive World Cup in the Brazil 2014 event's final, where Argentina was defeated in extra time by a score of 1–0.

Argentina has a long-standing rivalry with its neighbour, that came into existence from the early South American Championships, the 1928 Summer Olympics and the first World Cup final, held in 1930.

Argentina and Uruguay hold the record for most international matches played between two countries.[3] The two teams have faced each other 197 times since 1902. The first match between Argentina and Uruguay was also the first official international match to be played outside the United Kingdom.[note 4]

Argentina has a minor rivalry with Mexico, which developed in the 1990s. The rivalry is considered one-sided as Argentines do not consider Mexico as rivals. Although the first official match between both nations came in the 1930 FIFA World Cup where Argentina beat Mexico 6–3 in the group stage, the rivalry emerged during the late twentieth century, especially after the 1993 Copa América final, where Argentina beat Mexico 2–1.[79][80][81] That was the first time a non-CONMEBOL nation played in a Copa América final, and the first final played between both sides.[82]

The rivalry has continued in club competitions, where Argentine and Mexicans first met in 1968 Copa Interamericana. The rivalry between both nations at club level increased during the late 1990s, when Mexican clubs were invited to participate in Copa Libertadores, where they played memorable matches against Boca Juniors.[83]

During the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, some Mexican and Argentine fans had a fight in Doha prior to the match between both sides, among great animosity.[84] Both supporters fought again inside Lusail Stadium after the match that Argentina won 2–0, giving Argentina a chance to qualify and forcing Mexico to win against Saudi Arabia to qualify, which ended with Argentina and Poland qualifying and Mexico being eliminated alongside Saudi Arabia.[85]

This sense of rivalry is more keenly felt by Mexican supporters and media, since Argentines do not consider Mexico rivals like Brazil, Germany, Uruguay or England.

A recurrent rivalry developed from the 1990s between Argentina and Nigeria, based not on geographical proximity, long-term battles for honours or factors outside football, but due to the frequency of significant matches between them.[86][87][88][89][90][91] This has included five World Cup group games, all won by Argentina by a single goal margin: 2–1 in 1994, 1–0 in 2002, 1–0 in 2010, 3–2 in 2014 and 2–1 in 2018. The fixture is the most common in the competition's history involving an African nation,[92] and has occurred in five of the six tournaments for which Nigeria has qualified. The sides also met in the 1995 King Fahd Cup (the predecessor to the Confederations Cup) as champions of their respective continents, drawing 0–0.

Below full international level, their Olympic teams also faced off in the gold medal match in 1996 (3–2 to Nigeria), and 2008 (1–0 to Argentina). The final of the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship was also played between them; both Argentina goals in their 2–1 win were scored by Lionel Messi, who would go on to find the net for the senior team in the 2014[93] and 2018[94] World Cup fixtures.

The sense of rivalry is more keenly felt on the Nigerian side, as Argentina has won almost all of their encounters, so they do not consider Nigeria a rival like Brazil, England, Uruguay or Germany, in contrast to the West Africans who remain keen to finally overcome a more illustrious foe.[87]

Considered by sports media to be two historically great teams,[95] the Argentines and Dutch have developed an intense rivalry. They have met ten times in total, including six times during the World Cup.[96][97][98]