African representatives Senegal and Algeria began their 2026 FIFA World Cup campaigns on a disappointing note after suffering defeats to France and Argentina respectively.
In Group I, France secured a convincing 3-1 victory over Senegal, with Real Madrid star Kylian Mbappé delivering a match-winning performance by scoring twice. The French side dominated large spells of the encounter to claim all three points in their opening fixture.
Senegal fought hard but were unable to contain the attacking threat of the former world champions, who got their World Cup campaign off to a perfect start.
In Group J, defending champions Argentina cruised to a comfortable 3-0 win over Algeria thanks to a brilliant hat-trick from captain Lionel Messi.
Messi’s clinical display proved too much for the North Africans as Argentina controlled the game from start to finish, underlining their status as one of the tournament favourites.
The defeats leave both Senegal and Algeria with work to do in their remaining group matches as they seek to keep their hopes of reaching the knockout stage alive. Senegal will face Norway in their next outing, while Algeria will take on Jordan in a crucial Group J encounter.
