The Qatar 2022 campaign
Argentina lost to Saudi Arabia, then won their remaining group matches to finish first. Australia, the Netherlands and Croatia stood between them and the final. Two knockout ties reached penalties, including the 3–3 final against France. Messi's title was part of a collective route that required responses to defeat, lost leads and shoot-out pressure.
Reading the record
Argentina recorded 4 wins, 2 draws and 1 defeat across 7 matches, scoring 15 goals and conceding 8. FIFA’s match summaries record 48 attempts on target from 104 total attempts during their campaign.
Shoot-outs decide which team advances, but their kicks are excluded from the goal totals above. Matches decided on penalties count as draws in this win–draw–loss record; extra-time goals count towards the match score.
Matches to revisit
The Saudi Arabia match, Dutch quarter-final and France final form the clearest three-part account of how different Argentina's challenges became.
Final Group C standings
Argentina finished first with 6 points. The top two teams advanced to the round of 16.
| Team | P | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Argentina | 3 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 6 |
| Poland | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| Mexico | 3 | 2 | 3 | -1 | 4 |
| Saudi Arabia | 3 | 3 | 5 | -2 | 3 |
The route, match by match
- 22 Nov · Group C
Argentina 1–2 Saudi Arabia ↗
Saudi Arabia overturn Argentina's lead
Lusail Stadium · 13:00 Qatar time
Match context & statistics - 26 Nov · Group C
Argentina 2–0 Mexico ↗
Argentina restore room to breathe
Lusail Stadium · 22:00 Qatar time
Match context & statistics - 30 Nov · Group C
Poland 0–2 Argentina ↗
Argentina win the group; Poland survive defeat
Stadium 974 · 22:00 Qatar time
Match context & statistics - 3 Dec · Round of 16
Argentina 2–1 Australia ↗
Argentina get past Australia's late challenge
Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium · 22:00 Qatar time
Match context & statistics - 9 Dec · Quarter-final
Netherlands 2–2 Argentina ↗
Shoot-out: 3–4 (Netherlands – Argentina)
Argentina recover from a Dutch recovery
Lusail Stadium · 22:00 Qatar time
Match context & statistics - 13 Dec · Semi-final
Argentina 3–0 Croatia ↗
Argentina turn the semi-final into a clear victory
Lusail Stadium · 22:00 Qatar time
Match context & statistics - 18 Dec · Final
Argentina 3–3 France ↗
Shoot-out: 4–2 (Argentina – France)
Argentina survive a final of repeated reversals
Lusail Stadium · 18:00 Qatar time
Match context & statistics
Sources and method
FIFA’s complete Qatar 2022 match-report hub ↗
Campaign totals are calculated from Argentina’s match results and the individual FIFA statistical reports linked on each match page. The overview is an editorial retrospective by Qatar22 Editorial.