Walking through the neighborhood of Recoleta, Buenos Aires, I pull my jacket tighter against the cold. It is winter in Argentina, but today, June 16, the faces I pass are livelier, more excited. Excited chatter fills the streets, and from the European-style apartments lining the avenues, huge Argentine flags are hung from the balconies. In Argentina, today might as well be a national holiday: Argentina’s first game in the 2026 World Cup competition. Coming off a monumental championship victory in 2022, combined with widespread expectation that this will be Messi’s last “Mundial,” Argentina is buzzing with anticipation.