Messi and De Paul's Argentina Faces Cape Verde in the Round of 32 at the FIFA World Cup 2026™
MLS Inter Miami CF

Messi and De Paul's Argentina Faces Cape Verde in the Round of 32 at the FIFA World Cup 2026™

Published on July 2, 2026 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
Inter Miami CF News Release


Inter Miami CF captain Leo Messi and midfielder Rodrigo De Paul continue their FIFA World Cup 2026™ campaigns with Argentina, with La Albiceleste facing Cape Verde in the Round of 32 this Friday, July 3. Kick off at Miami Stadium is set for 6 p.m. ET.

Where to Watch

Fans can watch the action live in English on FOX, and in Spanish on Telemundo, Peacock.

Recapping Group Stage Action

The defending champions enter the Round of 32 after winning Group J with a perfect record of three wins for a total nine points.

Argentina opened with a 3-0 win over Algeria, followed by defeating Austria 2-0 and Jordan 3-1.

Captain Messi has been the team's leader at the tournament once again, scoring in all three Group Stage fixtures - recording a hat-trick against Algeria, a brace against Austria, and scoring once against Jordan - and currently leads the FIFA World Cup 2026™ in goals with six strikes. Notably, his goals saw the attacking maestro break the record to become the FIFA World Cup™'s all-time leading men's goalscorer, with his total sitting at 19 at the moment.

De Paul, meanwhile, started for Argentina in their first two matches and contributed an assist against Algeria.

Cape Verde enters the Round of 32 after making history by advancing to the knockout stages in their debut campaign at a FIFA World Cup. The African nation finished second in Group H with three points after playing out draws against Spain, Uruguay, and Saudi Arabia.

Messi and De Paul with Argentina

In his historic international career, Messi has guided Argentina to the 2021 and 2024 CONMEBOL Copa América titles and 2022 CONMEBOL-UEFA Cup of Champions crown, and further cemented his legacy by leading his country to a historic FIFA World Cup title in 2022.

Messi also notably holds the records for most caps (202) and most goals (123) for Argentina, while also holding the international record for most World Cup match appearances (29) and being the only player to score in the World Cup group stage, round of 16, quarterfinals, semifinals and final.

De Paul, meanwhile, is featuring in a World Cup for a second time after his key role en route to lifting the cup in 2022. El Motorcito was also one of the main figures alongside Messi in La Albiceleste's 2021 and 2024 CONMEBOL Copa América and 2022 CONMEBOL-UEFA Cup of Champions conquests. In all, the versatile midfielder has earned 89 caps, scoring two times, in his fruitful international career for Argentina.

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