2026 World Cup Group J Guide: Favorites Argentina Start Title Defense While Jordan Debuts
June 24, 2026 · Global
Defending champions Argentina begin their title defense at the 2026 World Cup with a favorable draw in Group J, joining Algeria, Austria and tournament debutants Jordan.
Defending champions Argentina begin their World Cup title defense with a favorable draw in Group J, where they are joined by Algeria, Austria and tournament debutants Jordan. Lionel Messi, who had suffered injury problems ahead of the tournament, returns for his sixth World Cup and remains a key figure in Lionel Scaloni's Argentina squad, which is one of the favorites to triumph in North America this summer and join Italy and Germany as four-time champions.
Austria and Algeria are fairly close in the FIFA rankings and offer interesting competition for the second qualifying spot of this group, while Jordan, participating for the first time, hopes to surprise the big teams.
This year's expanded World Cup with 48 teams means eight of the 12 third-placed teams will progress to the next round, so competition in this group is fierce.
Group J Match Schedule (all times BST)
June 16, 02:00: Argentina 3-0 Algeria — Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City
June 16, 05:00: Austria 3-1 Jordan — Levi’s Stadium, San Francisco
June 22, 6 p.m.: Argentina 2-0 Austria — AT&T Stadium, Dallas
June 22, 04:00: Jordan 1-2 Algeria — Levi's Stadium, San Francisco
June 27, 03:00: Algeria vs Austria — Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City
June 27, 3:00 p.m.: Jordan vs. Argentina — AT&T Stadium, Dallas.
Argentina, who are ranked second in the world, return to the US as one of the favorites to lift the trophy and become the first nation to retain the title since Brazil in 1962. The team has a talented squad with 17 players from the 2022 champions returning, including Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez, who will be accompanied by a number of talented young players.
They qualified for the World Cup as top South American qualifiers, with a goal difference of 21 and a nine-point lead over second-placed Ecuador. Coach Lionel Scaloni is not tied to any particular formation, but gives his midfielders freedom to direct play, while his many stars means there are plenty of creative options.
Argentina Squad
Goalkeepers: Juan Musso (Atletico Madrid), Geronimo Rulli (Marseille), Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa)
Back: Leonardo Balerdi (Marseille), Nicolas Tagliafico (Lyon), Gonzalo Montiel (River Plate), Lisandro Martinez (Manchester United), Cristian Romero (Tottenham), Nicolas Otamendi (Benfica), Facundo Medina (Marseille), Nahuel Molina (Atletico Madrid)
Center: Leandro Paredes (River Plate), Rodrigo de Paul (Inter Miami), Valentin Barco (Strasbourg), Giovani lo Celso (Real Betis), Ezequiel Palacios (Bayer Leverkusen), Alexis Mac Allister (Liverpool), Enzo Fernandez (Chelsea)
Forward: Julian Alvarez (Atletico Madrid), Lionel Messi (Inter Miami), Nicolas Gonzalez (Atletico Madrid), Thiago Almada (Atletico Madrid), Giuliano Simeone (Atletico Madrid), Nico Paz (Como), Jose Manuel Lopez (Palmeiras), Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan)
Coach: Lionel Scaloni
Main stars: Lionel Messi, Inter Miami: A fact that is not up for debate. Even though he is 38 years old, he remains the center of attention and talisman for this team, having been the top scorer in the South American qualifiers with eight goals.
Promising new talent: Franco Mastantuono, Real Madrid: The 18-year-old winger has been a force at the Spanish club, becoming the youngest player to appear in the Champions League, and also breaking the record to become the youngest player to ever appear for the senior squad at the age of 17 years, 9 months and 22 days in 2025.
FIFA Rating: 3
Odds to win at the World Cup: 11/2, latest odds from UK betting sites.
Algeria arrive in the US after a confidence boost at the Africa Cup of Nations, where they reached the quarter-finals, and qualified for the World Cup for the first time since 2014 as CAF Group G champions. They reached the last 16 in their last appearance at this tournament, so they are definitely a dark horse to watch in this group, although their preparation leading up to this tournament has been underwhelming - a friendly win over the Netherlands was a good warm-up, but their qualification has been fairly modest.
Algeria squad
Goalkeepers: Oussama Benbot (USM Alger), Melvin Masstil (Stade Nyonnaise), Luca Zidane (Granada)
Back: Achraf Abada (USM Alger), Rayan Ait-Nouri (Manchester City), Zinedine Belaid (JS Kabylie), Rafik Belghali (Verona), Ramy Bensebaini (Borussia Dortmund), Samir Chergui (Paris FC), Jaouen Hadjam (Young Boys Bern), Aissa Mandi (Lille), Mohamed Amine Tougai (Esperance)
Center: Houssem Aouar (Al Ittihad), Nabil Bentaleb (Lille), Hicham Boudaoui (Nice), Fares Chaibi (Eintracht Frankfurt), Ibrahim Maza (Bayer Leverkusen), Yassine Titraoui (Charleroi), Ramiz Zerrouki (Twente)
Forward: Mohamed Amine Amoura (Wolfsburg), Nadir Benbouali (Gyori ETO), Adil Boulbina (Al Duhail), Fares Ghedjemis (Frosinone), Amine Gouiri (Marseille), Riyad Mahrez (Al Ahli), Anis Hadj Moussa (Feyenoord)
Coach: Vladimir Petkovic
Main stars: Riyadh Mahrez, Al-Ahli: Although no longer at the peak of his form, Mahrez remains an important force in the team. The team captain has more than 100 international caps and is an experienced figure who can be a role model for emerging youngsters.
Promising new talent: Ibrahim Maza, Bayer Leverkusen: The 20-year-old impressed at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations and could be a star at this World Cup.
FIFA Ranking: 29
Odds to win the World Cup: 300/1.
Austria arrived with a new spirit and a more fluid attacking style of play, successfully qualifying for the World Cup for the first time in 28 years under their guidance. They have a more unified squad than just star players, with a strong identity and philosophy. They are known for their high-pressing style of play and intense counter-attacks at Euro 2024 and were able to occupy top spot in a group that included France and the Netherlands.
Austrian Squad
Goalkeepers: Patrick Pentz (Brondby), Alexander Schlager (RB Salzburg), Florian Wiegele (Viktoria Plzen)
Back: David Affengruber (Elche), David Alaba (Real Madrid), Kevin Danso (Tottenham Hotspur), Marco Friedl (Werder Bremen), Philipp Lienhart (Freiburg), Philipp Mwene (Mainz), Stefan Posch (Mainz), Alexander Prass (Hoffenheim), Michael Svoboda (Venezia)
Center: Carney Chukwuemeka (Borussia Dortmund), Florian Grillitsch (Braga), Konrad Laimer (Bayern Munich), Marcel Sabitzer (Borussia Dortmund), (Wolfsburg)
Forward: Marko Arnautovic (Crvena Zvezda), Michael Gregoritsch (Augsburg), Sasa Kalajdzic (LASK)
Coach: Ralf Rangnick
Main stars: Konrad Laimer, Bayern Munich: While not a glamorous name, he is an important presence in midfield for both the national team and Bayern Munich.
Promising new talent: Paul Wanner, PSV: Considered one of the brightest young talents, Wanner could be a star in the future.
FIFA Ranking: 23
Odds to win the World Cup: 150/1.
Jordan face a tough task in their first World Cup experience, with the likes of Argentina in this group, but they can learn from Saudi Arabia's upset of Argentina at the Qatar 2022 World Cup. They qualified for the first time after nine failed attempts, finishing second in Group B in the third round. Injuries to key players such as Yazan Al Naimat and Adham Al Qurashi have dampened their hopes of surprising, but they still have dangerous attacking talents in Ali Olwan and Mousa Al-Tamari.
Jordan Squad
Goalkeepers: Yazeed Abulaila (Al Hussein), Abdullah Al-Fakhouri (Al Wehdat), Noor Bani Attiah (Al Faisaly)
Back: Abdallah Nasib (Al Zawraa), Ehsan Haddad (Al Hussein), Saed Al-Rosan (Al Hussein), Saleem Obaid (Al Hussein), Yazan Al-Arab (FC Seoul), Mohammad Abualnadi (Selangor), Husam Abu Dahab (Al Faisaly), Anas Banawi (Al Faisaly), Mohannad Abu Taha (Al Quwa Al Jawiya), Mohammad Abu Hasheesh (Al Karma), Mohammad Abu Ghosh (Shabah Alordon)
Center: Noor Al Rawabdeh (Selangor), Nizar Al Rashdan (Qatar), Ibrahim Saadeh (Al Karma), Rajaei Ayed (Al Hussein), Mahmoud Al-Mardi (Al Hussein), Amer Jamous (Al Zawraa), Mohammad Al-Dawoud (Al Wehdat)
Front: Mousa Al-Tamari (Rennes), Odeh Al-Fakhouri (Pyramids), Mohammad Abu Zrayq (Raja Casablanca), Ali Azaizeh (Al Shabab), Ali Olwan (Al Sailiya)
Coach: Jamal Sellami
Main star: Mousa Al-Tamari, Rennes: The winger is the team's main creative outlet and has enjoyed an impressive season at French club Rennes.
Promising new talent: Mohannad Abu Taha, Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya: At 23 years old, he is one of the youngest players in the squad, providing energy and flexibility.
FIFA Ranking: 63
Odds to win the World Cup: 2500/1.
Group J Predictions: It's very difficult for Argentina not to top this group, but the defending champions tend to start the World Cup group stage slowly, so there could be a big surprise for one of the other three teams. However, Argentina should qualify easily, with Austria beating Algeria to second place, and first-timers Jordan finishing last.