England and Argentina will meet once again in the World Cup semi-finals on Wednesday, adding another chapter to one of football’s fiercest international rivalries. The two nations have produced several unforgettable World Cup matches over the years.
1962: Group Stage, Rancagua (Chile)
England beat Argentina 3-1 in their first-ever World Cup meeting. It was a straightforward contest without the drama that would define later encounters.
England reached the quarter-finals, while Argentina were knocked out in the group stage.
1966: Quarter-final, Wembley (England)
The rivalry took a heated turn in the 1966 quarter-final.
Argentina captain Antonio Rattin was sent off for arguing with the referee and took nearly 10 minutes to leave the field. The match was physical, with several tough challenges from both teams.
England struggled to break down Argentina’s defence before Geoff Hurst scored the only goal of the game in a 1-0 victory.
After the match, England manager Alf Ramsey was furious with Argentina’s style of play and even stopped his players from exchanging shirts with their opponents.
Rattin passed away on Saturday (July 11) at the age of 89, the same day England and Argentina secured their places in the 2026 World Cup semi-finals.
1986: Quarter-final, Mexico City
This remains the most famous World Cup meeting between the two countries.
Diego Maradona opened the scoring with the controversial “Hand of God” goal, punching the ball into the net past England goalkeeper Peter Shilton.
Just minutes later, Maradona produced one of the greatest goals in football history, dribbling from inside his own half past several England players before scoring.
Gary Lineker pulled one goal back, but Argentina held on for a 2-1 win and eventually lifted the World Cup.
1998: Round of 16, Saint-Etienne (France)
This match had everything. Michael Owen scored a brilliant solo goal for England, while David Beckham was sent off after kicking Argentina midfielder Diego Simeone.
Simeone later admitted he had deliberately tried to provoke Beckham into reacting.
Despite playing with 10 men for much of the second half, England pushed Argentina all the way. Sol Campbell thought he had scored a late winner, but the goal was ruled out.
The match went to penalties, where David Batty missed his spot-kick as Argentina advanced.
2002: Group Stage, Sapporo (Japan)
David Beckham got his revenge four years later by scoring the only goal of the match from the penalty spot as England beat Argentina 1-0.
The defeat proved costly for Argentina, who failed to get out of the group despite having stars such as Diego Simeone, Juan Sebastian Veron and Gabriel Batistuta.
England reached the quarter-finals before being knocked out by Brazil.
