Lionel Scaloni

Lionel Scaloni is the head coach of Argentina at the 2026 FIFA World Cup — the man who ended La Albiceleste's 36-year wait for a world title in Qatar 2022. Born in Pujato, Santa Fe on 16 May 1978, his first ever head-coaching role was the Argentina national team.

As a player he was a right-back for Estudiantes, Deportivo La Coruña, West Ham, Lazio, Mallorca and Atalanta, and went to the 2006 World Cup with Argentina. After retiring he joined Jorge Sampaoli's Argentina staff in 2017 and stayed on as interim head coach after Sampaoli's exit following the 2018 World Cup. The AFA confirmed him permanently shortly after, and he was just 40 — one of the youngest national-team coaches in the modern game.

His tenure is one of the most successful in Argentine football history: Copa América champions in 2021 and 2024, Finalissima winners in 2022 and, above all, the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. He built a system around Lionel Messi's late-career mastery while integrating Julián Álvarez, Enzo Fernández, Alexis Mac Allister and Nicolás González — and the transition from one generation to the next is now in full flow.

Argentina defend their crown in Group J with Algeria, Austria and Jordan, opening at Arrowhead Stadium on 16 June. Scaloni's challenge: become the first coach since 1962 to lead a team to consecutive World Cup titles.