Austria faces one of the toughest challenges in this year's World Cup today against defending champions Argentina.
Ralf Rangnick's squad are coming off a 3-1 win against Group J rivals Jordan and are most likely going to qualify for the knockout rounds.
Romano Schmid and Marko Arnautović found the net for Austria, with an own goal by Jordan adding to the tally.
Meanwhile, Argentina are among the favorites to win the World Cup, and their performance in the opening match proved why they can become only the third team to win consecutive World Cups.
Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images
Lionel Messi, who was making his 200th appearance, scored a hat trick, equaling Miroslav Klose as the tournament's all-time leading goal scorer.
The South American nation are heavy favorites to come out victorious from this Group J fixture and book a spot in the knockout rounds.
Referee, VAR Officials for Argentina vs Austria
Egyptian official Amin Mohamed Omar is the main referee for this match.
Omar primarily officiates domestically in the Egyptian Premier League, where he has handled nearly 200 top-flight matches since 2013.
The 40-year-old has been a part of major tournaments, including AFCON, where he has officiated multiple editions of the tournament (2019, 2022, 2024, and 2025). He also refereed the opening match and a semifinal in 2023.
This will be his second match of the World Cup. Earlier, he was involved in the Group A opener between South Korea and Czechia in Guadalajara
As for his stats, Omar averages between 3.81 and 3.97 yellow cards per match.
His straight red card average sits consistently between 0.20 and 0.32 red cards per game, meaning he sends off a player roughly once every three to five matches.
The full list of match officials includes:
- Referee: Amin Mohamed (Egypt)
- Assistant Referee 1: Mahmoud Abouelregal (Egypt)
- Assistant Referee 2: Ahmed Hossam Taha (Egypt)
- Fourth Official: Alejandro Hernández (Spain)
- VAR: Mamdouh Ashour (Egypt)
