FIFA World Cup 2026 :Canada/Mexico/United States: Discussion Thread

[meser#]

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The VAR has been favoring Argentina or have you forgotten? This game is going to be an exciting one it will be as tough as the final we had a surprising result yesterday where the Spanish side eliminated France 2-0 unexpectedly to be in the final. Argentina is the defending Champions they have been lucky with the help of FIFA to be in the semi final i believe that England is the first strong side they will be facing in this World Cup if they can win England they can win the World Cup again.

Fueling the speculation and media chatter about FIFA and referees favoring Argentina and Messi, Ismail Elfath is the referee for this semi-final match. He is actually one of Lionel Messi’s preferred officials, so Argentina got exactly who they wanted for this important match.

Elfath was an official during the 2022 World Cup Final and the 2023 Leagues Cup Final—and Messi's teams have won every single match he has refereed.

I don't believe anything like that is happening or will happen. Many people are bothered by Argentina reaching this stage and are making up such stories. Argentina got this far through a combination of determination and luck. No team really challenged them along the way; Egypt gave them the toughest test, but Argentina eliminated them too. There were no refereeing issues in that match. Today will be a tough game for Argentina. England will likely advance, and these speculations won't come up again.

[MArsland]

France didn’t play very well against Spain, and Spain managed to defeat France to advance to the final. Spain dominated the match by applying pressure from the first half onward and scored a goal on a penalty kick to close out the first half with a 1-0 lead. In the second half, Spain extended their lead to 2-0 with a goal by Pedro Porro, effectively sealing the victory. Although France increased their pressure in the final minutes, they were unable to score and were eliminated. To be honest, I was expecting France to win, but Spain defeated them.

Spain surprisingly defeated France. Considering France was one of the strongest contenders in this World Cup, they really didn't live up to expectations in today's match. From the first half, when Spain opened the scoring, it was clear that France was struggling to cope with Spain slick play. The Spanish teamwork managed to confuse the French players.
Congratulations to Spain on their success in advancing to the final, and they will face either England or Argentina. My guess is that Argentina will qualify. Messi will always be given a special place, trust me!! LoL

[Jostern]

France, a favorite for many around the world, was eliminated after failing to put up any real fight against Spain.
I would say the defining moment of the match was the incident involving Mbappé and goalkeeper Simon in the 85th minute.
Spain's style of play really frustrated France; I cannot recall a single scoring chance for the French side.
Mbappé finished the tournament with 8 goals. Currently, Messi is the top contender for the Golden Boot. If he manages to score against England today, he will likely finish the World Cup as the top scorer; Messi holds the advantage right now, having one more assist than Mbappé.
Kane and Bellingham are on 6 goals, but I do not think they will overtake Messi.

France played a very terrible game, I don’t really understand what there game plans was at the first instance, There Coach got everything absolutely wrong with the way the team was playing, the midfield wasn’t working for them, they’ didn’t play well not at all, I don’t know why he started an Aurelen Tchouameni who was injured, and Olise was nowhere to be found all throughout the game, and I think Manu Kone was very terrible the way he has performed was absolutely shocking when he came on, and I didn’t expect France to be that horrible, the entire French team was awful both the attackers, but I think Spain won the game in the midfield, that was where the game was won, Rodri was the best player for me on the field, the way he was controlling the game, and commanding the midfield, the French players was blown away, Rabiot was nowhere to be found in the game, Congratulations to Spain for qualifying for the Final of the FIFA World Cup that is a huge achievement.

[ruykeri]

Today's England vs Argentina match is going to be very exciting. Since both are strong teams, it is impossible to predict who will actually win. Even then, I will put Argentina ahead. Although the form of England players is very good, they will not be able to win with the world champions Argentina so easily. Argentina's strongest opponent is France then england , and Spain is an easier opponent than these two teams. If Argentina can win the semi-final, then their chances of winning the final will increase a lot.

[dzonikg28]

France didn’t play very well against Spain, and Spain managed to defeat France to advance to the final. Spain dominated the match by applying pressure from the first half onward and scored a goal on a penalty kick to close out the first half with a 1-0 lead. In the second half, Spain extended their lead to 2-0 with a goal by Pedro Porro, effectively sealing the victory. Although France increased their pressure in the final minutes, they were unable to score and were eliminated. To be honest, I was expecting France to win, but Spain defeated them.

Spain surprisingly defeated France. Considering France was one of the strongest contenders in this World Cup, they really didn't live up to expectations in today's match. From the first half, when Spain opened the scoring, it was clear that France was struggling to cope with Spain slick play. The Spanish teamwork managed to confuse the French players.
Congratulations to Spain on their success in advancing to the final, and they will face either England or Argentina. My guess is that Argentina will qualify. Messi will always be given a special place, trust me!! LoL

As Mbappe said it wasn't about confusion or surprise, they knew that Spain would defend with 11 players and they knew how Spain would play, but they were confident that their plan would be good enough to outplay Spain every now and then during the match. That didn't happen and Mbappe added that they were just not good enough. I think that statement fully captures what happened because France didn't find the holes in Spain's defense and that is quite unusual for France. It was safe to say before the match that this isn't like walking the dog for France, but I think most of the players didn't find their best form. Olise was on standby most of the time, Mbappe tried his deep runs but the passing never came through. Shots from the distance were not tried except for one or two times.

Dembele, Barcola, Olise, they all tried, but it never came across as if they were giving their best. In my opinion Mbappe tried all the time and while this can work against many teams, one man alone won't beat Spain.

[Agbamoni]

The English media have always backed conspiracy theories and controversies surrounding Messi and Argentina in the World Cup. Today, it is England against Argentina. I want to see if they will support Messi over their nation  . Most fans who dislike Messi have already predicted in sportsbooks that there will be a red card against England and a controversial penalty to help Argentina secure a place in the final. Also, there is a rumor circulating that the referee officiating today is Messi's favorite referee.

[rdluffy]

Guys, which team do you think has the best chance of beating Spain in the final?
Argentina or England?

Argentina seems to play a style of soccer more similar to Spain's, while England seems to have more physical strength, more individual talent, and a great goal-scorer

[knowngunman]

I don't believe anything like that is happening or will happen. Many people are bothered by Argentina reaching this stage and are making up such stories. Argentina got this far through a combination of determination and luck. No team really challenged them along the way; Egypt gave them the toughest test, but Argentina eliminated them too. There were no refereeing issues in that match. Today will be a tough game for Argentina. England will likely advance, and these speculations won't come up again.

So you mean everything that happened in Egypt vs Argentina game was a made up story? Did you actually watched that game? You didn't see anything wrong with the refree decisions?

Let be honest. I have nothing against Argentina neither in support of Egypt but that refereeing was a very poor one. It wasn't a fair officiating for both sides. Argentina came this far with determination and luck but we can not completely rule out the decisions of the refree that favoured them. It did contribute to their success that made them come this far.

England winning against them would be a shocker thou.

[Wakate]

Oh! What a performance from Spain, the underdogs have become the winners of the long anticipated game and they did that effortlessly, as you could see that it could have being the easiest game for Spain in this World Cup.

Spain kept the ball within their space with close contact possession and breakthrough passes that the France defence could not comprehend. At last, we could see that the best players in a team does not decide the outcome of the game and Spain proved that.

Congrats to Spain on reaching the finals of the World Cup, it was truly deserved.

Honestly I never thought that Spain can be this good to beat France 2 - 0 without France being able to score a single goal.
That match was fantastic even when France missed a lot of their chances to score but were unable.
Today we are expecting to see what will be the outcome between Argentina and England and I know that this match is not going to be easily predictable giving Argentina bigger odds than England.

[blue Snow]

France and Mbappé failed to realize their dream of reaching the World Cup final for the third time in a row after being defeated by Spain for the third consecutive time.

Mbappé had a rough day in France’s match against Spain. He seemed to fade into the background, unable to score a goal or get a shot on target. Mbappé was even powerless against Pau Curbasi, who played exceptionally well on Spain’s defensive line.

All of the French players underperformed, one might even say they played very poorly, especially the midfielders, who appeared confused and frequently misplaced passes or lost control of the ball while dribbling.

[Jossque]

France didn’t play very well against Spain, and Spain managed to defeat France to advance to the final. Spain dominated the match by applying pressure from the first half onward and scored a goal on a penalty kick to close out the first half with a 1-0 lead. In the second half, Spain extended their lead to 2-0 with a goal by Pedro Porro, effectively sealing the victory. Although France increased their pressure in the final minutes, they were unable to score and were eliminated. To be honest, I was expecting France to win, but Spain defeated them.

Spain surprisingly defeated France. Considering France was one of the strongest contenders in this World Cup, they really didn't live up to expectations in today's match. From the first half, when Spain opened the scoring, it was clear that France was struggling to cope with Spain slick play. The Spanish teamwork managed to confuse the French players.
Congratulations to Spain on their success in advancing to the final, and they will face either England or Argentina. My guess is that Argentina will qualify. Messi will always be given a special place, trust me!! LoL

It looks like we’ll most likely be watching the Argentina-Spain final. Since Argentina has made it this far, it would be a shame not to see them reach the final. In the final, Yamal and Messi will go head-to-head. They’ll most likely lead Argentina to the trophy. Argentina has faced easy opponents so far, and their first real challenge will be England. I think they’ll really struggle against England, but they’ll find a way to make it to the final.

[Rockson1]

Honestly I never thought that Spain can be this good to beat France 2 - 0 without France being able to score a single goal.
That match was fantastic even when France missed a lot of their chances to score but were unable.
Today we are expecting to see what will be the outcome between Argentina and England and I know that this match is not going to be easily predictable giving Argentina bigger odds than England.

This winning came as a shock to me, i was thinking that France will equalize in the second half and win even, but surprisingly Spain added another goal to make it 2goals, football is something else, this is name that no one should be sure of, who would have ever think that Spain will beat France at this stage of the world cup after all the good performance of France, many persons had in mind that France will win Spain but their expectations weren't met, missing a lot of chance is not an excuse, the match has been won, they should try again next time, Argentina vs England might be a match of survival of the fittest but all eyes on the match officials because we do not know what they are up to.

[Varnquister]

England is the slight favorite in this match, but since Argentina has Messi, I see Argentina as having a slight edge either way. Since Argentina has come this close to the trophy so many times before, I believe they’ll keep fighting until the very end, which is why I see them as the team more likely to win this match. In terms of the roster, I think England has the better squad, but Argentina’s attacking line is also made up of talented and skilled players. We’ll most likely see Argentina in the final today.

[Taricoins]

The English media have always backed conspiracy theories and controversies surrounding Messi and Argentina in the World Cup. Today, it is England against Argentina. I want to see if they will support Messi over their nation  . Most fans who dislike Messi have already predicted in sportsbooks that there will be a red card against England and a controversial penalty to help Argentina secure a place in the final. Also, there is a rumor circulating that the referee officiating today is Messi's favorite referee.

All in all it would be a heavy blow with all this propaganda and they still lost to Argentina, I saw on some outlet that it's today the debate of the greatest player will be settled between Messi and Saka, lol.

I don't know who will be my favourite as Argentina plays terribly but still get there win. Game play alone, I see England beating Argentina but when it comes to passion and mentality by far that's what takes Argentina ahead

[Volgastallion]

Well guys what a game we just have yesterday, i didnt enjoy it so much since the Spain team was so dominant that France never stand a chance to do something so it was not so much emotions involved, but hat off to Spain they played a majestic football and made France look like a amateur team for the first time in a ton of years, i didnt remember the Deschamps teams reduce to this.

[Bluedrem]

England is the slight favorite in this match, but since Argentina has Messi, I see Argentina as having a slight edge either way. Since Argentina has come this close to the trophy so many times before, I believe they’ll keep fighting until the very end, which is why I see them as the team more likely to win this match. In terms of the roster, I think England has the better squad, but Argentina’s attacking line is also made up of talented and skilled players. We’ll most likely see Argentina in the final today.

Although statistics show that England has won more of the matches Argentina and England have faced so far. These two teams have faced each other 14 times before, of which England has won 6 times and Argentina has won 3 times and the remaining 5 matches have been drawn.
However, there has been a lot of change in Argentina's previous performance and current performance, due to which England may lose to Argentina this time. It is such a matter that England will give up so easily.
All in all, we seem to be enjoying a great match today.

[Altryist]

England is the slight favorite in this match, but since Argentina has Messi, I see Argentina as having a slight edge either way. Since Argentina has come this close to the trophy so many times before, I believe they’ll keep fighting until the very end, which is why I see them as the team more likely to win this match. In terms of the roster, I think England has the better squad, but Argentina’s attacking line is also made up of talented and skilled players. We’ll most likely see Argentina in the final today.

Yes, England is indeed considered the slight favorite by bookmakers today, but calling them a "favorite" is a bit of a stretch, given that the margin is so narrow. I’d say the bookmakers view the two teams as having absolutely equal chances of winning. I also think Argentina will make it to the final again. Even though their path to the semi-final wasn't exactly easy and they conceded quite a few goals, there are plenty of obvious factors working in Argentina's favor. Reaching the semi-final is already a solid achievement for England, and since Spain surprised us yesterday, why couldn't England do the same today? 

[Luzin]

This winning came as a shock to me, i was thinking that France will equalize in the second half and win even, but surprisingly Spain added another goal to make it 2goals, football is something else, this is name that no one should be sure of,

At the beginning before the match I didn't expect France to lose, but today Spain really played well. However, looking at the way they played, Spain's dominance is very clear. I can see how Spain plays as a team and doesn't just rely on one player like Mbappe in France. The strategy Didier Deschamps wanted didn't go well and even failed. So I feel that France did lose and Spain could win by a 2 goal margin. I think if Spain can play like they did today, they are the favorites to win the championship this year.

[Cossyblack]

Guys, which team do you think has the best chance of beating Spain in the final?
Argentina or England?

In my opinion Argentina has the best chances to beat Spain if they play against eachother. I think Argentina will defeat Spain but it won't go down easy, they will have to work hard because Spain has a strong defence and deadly attacks. Before Argentina can be able to penetrate through Spain defence, they need to come up with a brilliant strategy otherwise they might end up like France. Argentina need to have plan that will work,Spain is too strong to be taken lightly. Spain isn't like cape Verde, Egyp, Switzerland they are far better and stronger than thos teams so Argentina must work hard to defeat them. Argentina still has a semi final to win,if they can be able beat England, Messi will do his magic against Spain to win the trophy.

[liasbaa]

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The VAR has been favoring Argentina or have you forgotten? This game is going to be an exciting one it will be as tough as the final we had a surprising result yesterday where the Spanish side eliminated France 2-0 unexpectedly to be in the final. Argentina is the defending Champions they have been lucky with the help of FIFA to be in the semi final i believe that England is the first strong side they will be facing in this World Cup if they can win England they can win the World Cup again.

Fueling the speculation and media chatter about FIFA and referees favoring Argentina and Messi, Ismail Elfath is the referee for this semi-final match. He is actually one of Lionel Messi’s preferred officials, so Argentina got exactly who they wanted for this important match.

Elfath was an official during the 2022 World Cup Final and the 2023 Leagues Cup Final—and Messi's teams have won every single match he has refereed.

I don't believe anything like that is happening or will happen. Many people are bothered by Argentina reaching this stage and are making up such stories. Argentina got this far through a combination of determination and luck. No team really challenged them along the way; Egypt gave them the toughest test, but Argentina eliminated them too. There were no refereeing issues in that match. Today will be a tough game for Argentina. England will likely advance, and these speculations won't come up again.

Although the match will be difficult for Argentina, they will be able to overcome the obstacles as they did in the previous match. One of the most positive decisions is that FIFA assigns responsibility for Argentina matches to people who will pave the way for the team to win. Some may misunderstand me, but Argentina's victories are not just about luck, they have many people responsible for them. Not only that, Argentina's attacking players have great confidence and play well to take the result of the match in their favour. I expect Argentina in the final.