Making his 200th appearance for his country, Messi scored his first treble at a World Cup. And it created a piece of history, as the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner took his World Cup finals goal tally to 16 - moving him level with Germany's Miroslav Klose as the all-time leading scorer in the competition's history. The three-time world champions were made to work for victory at the Kansas City Stadium as they aim to become only the third nation to successfully defend the World Cup. It was the first time Argentina had won their opening match at a World Cup as defending champions, having suffered defeats in 1982 and 1990. That was down to the brilliance of Messi, who curled home a wonderful opener in the 17th minute. The 38-year-old collected the ball from Inter Miami team-mate Rodrigo De Paul before bending a strike past Luca Zidane - the son of France legend Zinedine Zidane - on his 27th World Cup appearance. His goal arrived 12 minutes after an earlier effort had been disallowed during a breathless start, with Algeria also having a strike ruled out three minutes later as the game burst into life right from the off. But on a night when he became the first player to appear in six World Cups, Messi was lucky to escape punishment for reckless challenge on Algeria's Aissa Mandi midway through the first half. Argentina's second came from close range on the hour mark when Messi pounced on a mistake from Zidane, before he sealed a first World Cup treble in the 76th minute when he arrowed home a thunderous strike from the edge of the area after taking the ball from Nicolas Gonzalez. Having made a winning start in Group J, Argentina next face matches against Austria and Jordan.

Mbappe broke Senegal's resistance in the second half with a low strike before rifling home a sensational long-range effort deep into stoppage time. The Real Madrid forward's second strike lifted him on to 58 goals for Les Bleus - one clear of former record holder Olivier Giroud. Bradley Barcola had earlier put France 2-0 up before Ibrahim Mbaye pulled one back, but Mbappe's second of the game ended Senegal's hopes of a comeback. It had been an underwhelming display by France prior to Mbappe's opener as Senegal created the better opportunities and were perhaps unfortunate not to break the deadlock in an impressive first-half display. Nicolas Jackson went closest for the Lions of Teranga when he rifled a low shot against the base of the post - which rebounded off goalkeeper Mike Maignan's foot and trickled narrowly wide of the upright. Ismaila Sarr should have given Senegal the lead on the stroke of half-time but failed to steer his close-range effort on target after connecting with Sadio Mane's cross. France, though, emerged for the second half with renewed purpose and were controversially denied a penalty when Mane appeared to catch Mbappe inside the box. Referee Alireza Faghani initially awarded a corner for France, but the majority of fans inside the stadium were expecting the official to award a spot-kick after he was sent to his monitor by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR). Faghani, however, decided that Mbappe had initiated the contact with former Liverpool forward Mane. It ultimately mattered little, though, as France - and Mbappe - responded in style to secure all three points. "People will still criticise him," said Deschamps. "He can from time to time miss a game or two but on one action he really is able to tip the scales and bring his team to victory. "People say he doesn't defend enough – well, he isn't here to defend. He is only 27, from the first day on, before he scored the two goals today, he does a lot for the group as a captain. "I am happy for him. He wanted to score in a real match and especially this match with a global audience, he has a real aura."

The list of world-class talent who have chosen to play in the Saudi Pro League has risen over the years. But could the presence of these multiple Champions League and Ballon d'Or winners be finally benefitting the nation that has been selected to host the 2034 World Cup? Over the years the Saudi Arabia national team has struggled on the world stage. At the 2002 World Cup they suffered a humiliating 8-0 defeat against Germany in their first group game in Japan. They exited the tournament without a point - or a goal. However, the performance of the national team has steadily improved since the Saudi Pro League started throwing money at attracting big names. In Russia in 2018, Saudi Arabia beat an Egypt team that included Mohamed Salah 2-1 thanks to Salem al Dawsari's late winner. And, four years later in Qatar, they sent shockwaves around the world by defeating Argentina in their opening game, with Al Dawsari again the scorer of the iconic winning goal On Monday, they launched their seventh appearance at the World Cup with a hard-fought 1-1 draw against Uruguay in Miami. Are the days of 8-0 thumpings on the world stage a thing of the past? "We have to teach the young players here what it takes so they can move to other clubs," said Benzema after joining Saudi Arabian champions Al-Ittihad in 2023. "It's a good league and there are many good players."

The Pharaohs took the lead in the 21st minute through Al Ahly midfielder Emam Ashour, who thundered a 20-yard strike into the bottom corner past Thibaut Courtois. But Thomas Meunier's low cross was turned into his own net by Egypt defender Mohamed Hany in the 66th minute, under pressure from substitute Romelu Lukaku. Egypt were backed by a passionate support base on the USA's west coast as they hunted their first World Cup win in eight games, having made their tournament debut back in 1934. Instead the seven-time African champions spent the final moments holding on and managed to avoid defeat at a World Cup for only the third time. Despite being record Africa Cup of Nations winners, Egypt have a poor record across their previous three World Cup appearances, and have now failed to win any of their eight games since their debut 92 years ago. After going ahead, they nearly doubled their lead before the break when Mostafa Zico's drilled strike across goal was tipped behind by Belgium keeper Courtois. Playing on his 34th birthday, Egypt captain Mohamed Salah also had a second-half header well-saved by Courtois and goalscorer Ashour failed to hit the target on the rebound. Belgium manager Rudi Garcia introduced the Red Devils' all-time leading goalscorer Lukaku in the 66th minute - and seconds later his presence spooked Hany into his error. Hamstring injuries had limited Lukaku to just 40 minutes in Serie A for Napoli across the 2025-26 season. A few minutes before the equaliser, his club team-mate Kevin de Bruyne had struck the outside of the post from a free-kick as Belgium started to take control.

On the tickets and in the listings, this match was billed as Iran v New Zealand. But in the stands and chanting outside the stadium, it was not the Kiwis who were Iran's most vocal opponents - it was their own dissidents. Time and again, Iranian team officials have said they want football to unite people. The mood here for the World Cup group stage game was anything but united. Outside the Los Angeles Stadium, the atmosphere was politically charged. Hundreds of Iranian flags were flying. The most visible were the pre-revolutionary flags bearing the Lion and Sun emblem. For many Iranian-Americans, the flag has become a symbol of opposition to the regime in Tehran. Fifa has banned it inside stadiums as a political symbol. But it was flying inside nonetheless and emblazoned on t-shirts. A few hundred protesters gathered outside, angry at Fifa's decision and at what they see as a national team that represents the Islamic Republic rather than the Iranian people. "Mullahs' team is not my team," one group chanted. "Regime change in Iran," sang another. Then they broke into song - Iran's pre-revolutionary national anthem. A young man, when asked to translate, smiles. "It means freedom and pride," he says. The soundscape changed dramatically inside the stadium.