For most of the evening, England looked like the better side. It did not matter. Argentina, the reigning World Cup champions, struck twice in the closing minutes to beat England 2-1 in a semifinal at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Wednesday, booking a place in Sunday's final and a chance to defend their title.
How it turned
England led for much of the match after Anthony Gordon finished a Morgan Rogers cross in the 55th minute. The lead held into the final stretch, until Argentina's experience, and Lionel Messi's, took over. Enzo Fernández equalized with a header in the 85th minute, and deep in stoppage time Lautaro Martínez headed home the winner in the 90+3rd. Both goals came from Messi crosses, his fingerprints on the comeback even as his legs, at 39, do less of the running.
The win sends Argentina to Sunday's final against Spain, who reached it by beating France 2-0. No team has won back-to-back World Cups in about 70 years; Argentina are now one match from doing it.
The banner
The celebration did not stay on the field. After the final whistle, Argentine players displayed a banner reading "Las Malvinas son Argentinas," or "The Falklands are Argentine," invoking the disputed South Atlantic islands over which Argentina and Britain fought a brief, deadly war in 1982. FIFA rules bar political displays inside stadiums, and Argentina's own government had asked players to avoid the imagery before a fixture that security officials had flagged as among the tournament's most sensitive.
It was a jarring coda to a football match, and a reminder that the England-Argentina rivalry has never been only about sport. The two nations have met at World Cups amid real-world antagonism before, most famously in 1986, and Wednesday's banner ensured the political history was again part of the story.
England's exit, and the road ahead
For England, it was a bruising way to go out after a strong run. Prince William, in a message to the team, said he was "gutted" but urged the players to "hold their heads high." Their manager will face familiar questions about a side that controlled a semifinal and still lost it.
Argentina, meanwhile, move on to a final that also carries a home-continent flavor: the 2026 World Cup is the first hosted jointly by the United States, Canada and Mexico, with venues that include SoFi Stadium in Inglewood. The decisive match is set for Sunday at MetLife Stadium outside New York, where Messi and the champions will try to make history, and where the football, at least, will again take center stage.
