ATLANTA — England vs Argentina in a World Cup semifinal, it doesn’t get much better than this.
Legends Harry Kane and Lionel Messi lead these rivals as the winner will play in the World Cup final against Spain on Sunday.
Below are all of the live updates, analysis, videos, reaction and more you need from Atlanta, as England and Argentina square off.
#Argentina fan Agustin believes it will be tight but they will beat #England on penalty kicks to reach the #WorldCup final.
— Joe Prince-Wright (@JPW_NBCSports) July 15, 2026
“It’s going to be a really tough game, very physical… For us it has been insanely difficult but we made it and we’re going to make it. That’s for sure!” pic.twitter.com/wMjzKI2A1h
#England fan Jordan Gold, from Portsmouth, has spent everything he has to be here for semifinal v #Argentina
— Joe Prince-Wright (@JPW_NBCSports) July 15, 2026
Yes, he has “It’s Coming Home!” shaved into his chest.
He challenged the England player with the hairiest chest to copy him. This is what the #WorldCup is all about ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/BRxOPo90t2
#England fans warming up nicely here in Atlanta before #Argentina semifinal. pic.twitter.com/6Ef31laSaz
— Joe Prince-Wright (@JPW_NBCSports) July 15, 2026
As the song goes, #England’s fans do not want to go home. #WorldCup pic.twitter.com/h6vdtOugFj
— Joe Prince-Wright (@JPW_NBCSports) July 15, 2026
#England fan dressed as Harry Potter with a St George’s cross on Hedwig. “Harry Potter, he’s one of our own!” sing the England fans here in Atlanta. pic.twitter.com/HlCKsgkfnO
— Joe Prince-Wright (@JPW_NBCSports) July 15, 2026
Argentina’s group stage was perfect with three wins from three and Lionel Messi dazzling and breaking records.
But boy have the knockout rounds been tough.
They survived a huge scare against Cape Verde, and were then 2-0 down against Egypt late on but somehow surged back to win 3-2.
In the quarterfinal against Switzerland Julian Alvarez and Lautaro Martinez stepped up to help Messi out and Argentina will need plenty more of that today in Atlanta.
Group stage
Beat Algeria 3-0 in Kansas City
Beat Austria 2-0 in Dallas
Beat Jordan 3-1 in Dallas
Round of 32
Beat Cape Verde 3-2 in Miami
Round of 16
Beat Egypt 3-2 in Atlanta
Quarterfinals
Beat Switzerland 3-1 in Kansas City
This is all of the information you need to watch this massive World Cup semifinal live.
The stream link will be particularly helpful if you’re working today...
How to watch England vs Argentina live, stream link and start time
Kick off time: 3 pm ET Wednesday, July 15
Venue: Mercedes-Benz Stadium — Atlanta
TV Channel: Telemundo
Streaming: Stream live on Peacock, en Espanol
Giving score predictions is always tough but it seems like it’s going to be extremely tight in Atlanta on Wednesday.
Both teams are struggling at the back and have incredible attackers, so you might think there will be lots of goals.
But these teams basically cancel the other out and it’s going to be down to whichever star forward shows up: Kane or Messi.
Check out our score predictions below, as we go into more detail in the video:
Joe Prince-Wright
England 2-1 Argentina (AET)
Nicholas Mendola
England 1-2 Argentina
Andy Edwards
England 2-1 Argentina
Both England and Argentina fans I spoke to want to see this match happen more often.
They haven’t played a game since 2005 in a friendly in Geneva. The last time they met at a World Cup was in the group stage in 2002.
Their most memorable was the infamous World Cup quarterfinal in Mexico City in 1986, when Diego Maradona pulled off the ‘Hand of God’ as Argentina went on to win the tournament.
Here is their head-to-head history, which England are on top in.
England vs Argentina head-to-head history
All time meetings: 14
England wins: 6
Argentina wins: 2
Draws: 6
Meetings in World Cup: 5
England wins: 3
Argentina wins: 1
Draws: 1
England total goals scored: 21
Argentina total goals scored: 15
England have basically done what they had to do throughout this tournament. Just.
They won the group with minimum fuss as Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham have combined for 12 goals with six goals each. They have found a way to drag England through games.
Here’s a look at England’s journey at this World Cup.
Group stage
Beat Croatia 4-2 in Dallas
Drew Ghana 0-0 in Boston
Beat Panama 2-0 in New Jersey
Round of 32
Beat DR Congo 2-1 in Atlanta
Round of 16
Beat Mexico 3-2 in Mexico City
Quarterfinals
Beat Norway 2-1 in Miami
Of course, England and Argentina are huge rivals on and off the pitch.
But speaking to supporters of both nations around Atlanta yesterday it’s clear there is respect for their love of football.
“We have the same vibes and we understand football quite similarly,” Agustin Lopez, an Argentina fan wearing a Boca Juniors shirt said. “So I think it will be quite an interesting fun fight, but not a real fight, but in the singing and dancing. It will be a good atmosphere in the stadium.”
In a bar in downtown Atlanta Mariano Di Croce and Neil Smith got chatting, and it was a really heartwarming, almost cathartic experience for them to talk about their collective suffering watching their teams play.
“In Argentina, we have this saying where we say that Argentinians were born to suffer. So like this is almost like a self-fulfilling prophecy. Yeah, it’s really hard,” Mariano Di Croce laughed.
As Di Croce was saying this, Smith was smiling and nodding along knowingly.
As an England fan, he understands the suffering. Multiple heartbreaking defeats in semifinals and finals of recent major tournaments, and stretching back many decades, has taken its toll on England’s fans.
“The suffering for us has gone on for however long we keep getting close,” Smith said. “If you lose, then it’s on to the next one, and it’s still, you know, the same level of, um, optimism, let’s say! But something, somewhere around the experience at this World Cup is a little different.”
