1986 FIFA World Cup in the context of "2026 FIFA World Cup"

The Argentina national football team (Spanish: Selección de fútbol de Argentina), nicknamed la Albiceleste (lit. 'the White and Sky Blue'), represents Argentina in men's international football and is administered by the Asociación del Fútbol Argentino (lit. 'Argentine Football Association'), the governing body of football in Argentina. It has been a member of FIFA since 1912 and a founding member of CONMEBOL since 1916. It was also a member of PFC, the unified confederation of the Americas from 1946 to 1961.

They are the reigning world champions, having won the most recent FIFA World Cup in 2022, earning their third star shown by the team's crest. Overall, Argentina has appeared in a FIFA World Cup final six times, a record equaled by Italy and surpassed only by Brazil and Germany. Argentina played in the inaugural World Cup final in 1930, which they lost 4–2 to Uruguay. The following final appearance came 48 years later, in 1978, when the team captained by Daniel Passarella defeated the Netherlands 3–1 in extra time, becoming world champions for the first time. Captained by Diego Maradona, Argentina won their second World Cup eight years later, in 1986, with a 3–2 final victory over West Germany. They reached the final once more under the guidance of Maradona, in 1990, but were ultimately beaten 1–0 by West Germany. A few decades later, Argentina, captained by Lionel Messi made their fifth final appearance in 2014, losing to Germany 1–0 after extra time. In 2022, again captained by Messi, they were crowned world champions for the third time, the fourth-most of any country, beating France 4–2 on penalties, following a 3–3 draw after extra time. The team's World Cup–winning managers are César Luis Menotti in 1978, Carlos Bilardo in 1986 and Lionel Scaloni in 2022. In addition, Argentina has also been very successful in the Copa América, with a record 16 titles, most recently winning the 2024 edition. They are also the only nation to have won the Copa América three consecutive times: they did it in 1945, 1946 and 1947. Furthermore, Argentina won the inaugural FIFA Confederations Cup in 1992 and is the most successful team in the CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions, having won it twice, in 1993 and 2022. The national team also won the Panamerican Championship in 1960. In total, with 23 official titles won as of 2025, Argentina holds the record in senior official titles won.

The Mexico national football team (Spanish: Selección de fútbol de México) represents Mexico in men's international football, which is governed by the Federación Mexicana de Fútbol (English: Mexican Football Federation) founded in 1927. It has been an affiliate member of FIFA since 1929 and a founding affiliate member of CONCACAF since 1961. Regionally, it is an affiliate member of NAFU in the North American Zone.From 1946 to 1961, it was a member of NAFC, the former governing body of football in North America and a predecessor confederation of CONCACAF, and also a member of PFC, the former unified confederation of the Americas.

Mexico has qualified for the FIFA World Cup seventeen times and has qualified consecutively since 1994, making it one of six countries to do so. It is one of four CONCACAF teams to have advanced to the knockout stage, reaching the quarter-finals twice (1970 and 1986) both as hosts, and also reaching the round of 16 in seven editions. On 13 July 1930, Mexico played with France in the first match in World Cup history in Uruguay 1930. In 2026, Mexico will host the World Cup for the third time.It has qualified for the FIFA Confederations Cup seven times, being the only CONCACAF team and the only non-European or South American team to have won a FIFA global competition, winning the 1999 FIFA Confederations Cup as hosts, defeating Brazil 4–3.

Daniel Alberto Passarella (born 25 May 1953) is an Argentine former footballer and manager, who is considered one of the greatest defenders of all time. As a player for Argentina, he was part of two FIFA World Cup-winning teams; he captained his nation to victory at the 1978 World Cup which Argentina hosted, and was also part of the winning squad in 1986.

Although playing as a centre-back, Passarella was also a proficient goalscorer; at one point, he was football's highest-scoring defender, with 134 goals in 451 matches, a record which was subsequently broken by Dutch player Ronald Koeman. In 2004, Passarella was named one of the 125 greatest living footballers by Pelé at a FIFA awards ceremony. In 2007, The Times placed him at 36th in their list of the 50 hardest footballers in history, recalling that he "tackled with the ferocity of the wild bull of the Pampas". In 2017, he was named as the 56th best player by FourFourTwo in their list of the 100 all-time greatest footballers. As a manager, he coached the Argentina and Uruguay national teams, among several club sides.

The 1986 FIFA World Cup final was the final of the 1986 FIFA World Cup, held in Mexico. The match was held at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City on 29 June 1986 and had an attendance of 114,600. It was contested by Argentina and West Germany. Argentina won the match 3–2 in regulation time.

Dr. Carlos Salvador Bilardo (born 16 March 1938) is an Argentine former physician, football player, and manager.

Bilardo achieved worldwide renown as a player with Estudiantes de La Plata in the 1960s, and as the manager of the Argentina side that won the 1986 FIFA World Cup and came close to retaining the title in 1990, where they reached the final. As manager of Argentina, he was renowned for successfully employing the 3–5–2 formation at the highest level; this formation has been in use for decades, but has never achieved mainstream status.

Michel François Platini (French pronunciation: [miʃɛl fʁɑ̃swa platini]; born 21 June 1955) is a French football administrator and former player and manager. Regarded as one of the greatest footballers of all time, Platini won the Ballon d'Or three times in a row, in 1983, 1984 and 1985, and came seventh in the FIFA Player of the Century vote. In recognition of his achievements, he was named a Knight of the Legion of Honour in 1985 and became an Officer in 1998. As the president of UEFA in 2015 he was banned from involvement in football under FIFA's organisation, over ethics violations. The ban lasted until 2023.

During his career, Platini played for the clubs Nancy, Saint-Étienne, and Juventus. Nicknamed Le Roi (The King) for his ability and leadership, he was a prolific goalscorer; he won the Serie A capocannoniere award three consecutive times between 1983 and 1985, and was the top scorer of Juventus's victorious 1984–85 European Cup campaign. Platini was a key player of the France national team that won the 1984 European Championship, a tournament in which he was the top scorer and best player, and reached the semi-finals of the 1982 and 1986 World Cups. Together with midfielders Alain Giresse, Luis Fernández and Jean Tigana, he formed the carré magique (magic square) of the French team in the 1980s. Platini was his country's record goalscorer until 2007, and held the record for most goals scored (9) in the European Championship until being surpassed by Cristiano Ronaldo in 2021, despite only appearing in the 1984 tournament.

The 1990 FIFA World Cup was the 14th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was held from 8 June to 8 July 1990 in Italy, the second country to host the event for a second time (the first being Mexico in 1986). Teams representing 116 national football associations entered and qualification began in April 1988. 22 teams qualified from this process, along with the host nation Italy and defending champions Argentina.

The tournament was won by West Germany, for the third time. They beat defending champions Argentina 1–0 at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, a rematch of the previous final four years earlier. Italy finished third and England fourth, after both lost their semi-finals in penalty shootouts. This was the last tournament to feature a team from West Germany, with the country being reunified with East Germany a few months later in October, as well as teams from the Eastern Bloc before the end of the Cold War in 1991, as the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, and Czechoslovakia teams all made their final appearances. Costa Rica, Ireland and the United Arab Emirates made their first appearances in the finals. As of 2026, this was the only time the United Arab Emirates qualified for a FIFA World Cup finals. Cameroon went on an unexpectedly strong run in the tournament, becoming the first African team to reach the quarter-finals of the World Cup. The official match ball was the Adidas Etrusco Unico.

The Denmark national football team (Danish: Danmarks herre-fodboldlandshold or herrelandsholdet) represents Denmark and Greenland in men's international football competitions. It is controlled by the Danish Football Association (DBU), the governing body for the football clubs which are organised under DBU. Denmark's home stadium is Parken Stadium in the Østerbro district of Copenhagen.

Denmark were winners of the unofficial 1906 Intercalated Games football competition and silver medalists at the 1908 and 1912 Olympics. However, as amateurs who prohibited their internationals from becoming professionals at foreign clubs, Denmark did not qualify for the FIFA World Cup until 1986, although they won another Olympic silver in 1960.