Poll: Will Messi and Argentina Repeat As World Cup Champs?

[Editor's note: Welcome to Athlon Sports' poll of the day, where we ask readers to weigh in on the biggest topic of the day. Thanks for voting, and be sure to sound off in the comment section.]

Tuesday was quite the day for 39-year-old athletes. Novak Djokovic, who turned 39 in May, defeated Felix Auger Aliassime to advance to the semifinals at Wimbledon for a record eighth straight year. Not to be outdone, Lionel Messi, who turned 39 two weeks ago, scored the late equalizer in Argentina's stunning comeback win over Egypt to advance to the 2026 World Cup quarterfinals.

Messi is the all-time leading scorer in the World Cup with 21 goals, and he has scored at least one goal in each of his last nine World Cup matches, also a record.

Argentina is the defending World Cup champion, looking to be the first country to repeat as champion since Brazil in 1962. After back-to-back close calls, Argentina will face Switzerland in the quarterfinals (Saturday, 9 p.m. ET, Fox). Heavy hitters France, Spain and England are still alive as well. So…

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This story was originally published July 8, 2026 at 8:29 AM.