FIFA World Cup draw held in Washington, Scaloni urges focus as Argentina land ‘favourable’ group

The draw for the 2026 FIFA World Cup was conducted in Washington, DC, on Friday, delivering major talking points as co-hosts Mexico, Canada and the USA were placed in Groups A, B and D respectively. Defending champions Argentina landed in Group J alongside Algeria, Austria and debutants Jordan — a draw that many back home viewed as favourable for their title defence.

Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni, however, urged caution. Speaking at the ceremony — where he arrived holding the World Cup trophy — Scaloni said his squad would stick to the principles that carried them to glory at Qatar 2022.

“We are going to give the maximum and try to do what we did in the last World Cup, which is to give everything we can, not to give a ball up for lost,” he said.

Despite positive reactions in Buenos Aires, Scaloni warned that every opponent posed a threat, noting that the knockout path could become challenging. Should Argentina advance, they will cross paths with a Group H team — a pool featuring Spain, Uruguay, Saudi Arabia and Cape Verde.

“As in 2022, we say that there is no easy opponent. You have to play the games,” he said. “If it is then that the group (H), the crossover is difficult. But first we have to get through and then we'll see.”

Scaloni also offered respect to their group rivals. Algeria, he noted, have “a good team with great players” and are led by Vladimir Petkovic, who once coached him at Lazio. He praised Austria’s “great qualifying round,” and described Jordan — World Cup debutants — as an unpredictable but dangerous opponent. Reflecting on Argentina’s shock defeat to Saudi Arabia in their 2022 opener, he added: “We have that experience, we have to play the match.”

The draw ceremony also briefly featured US President Donald Trump, who was presented with the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize by FIFA President Gianni Infantino — a moment acknowledged before proceedings returned to the group allocations.

The event marked a key milestone in the buildup to the 2026 tournament, setting the stage for preparations across the three host nations.

(This story was taken from syndicated feed and was only edited for style by Gujarat Samachar Digital team)