Scaloni remains calm and cool as Argentina prepares to defend its FIFA World Cup title

The image is still remarkable.

Lionel Scaloni stands impassively on the sidelines after Gonzalo Montiel scored the decisive penalty in the 2022 World Cup final, giving Argentina its third star with a victory over France.

The coach didn’t celebrate at first, remaining still and silent, as if oblivious to the achievement he himself had helped achieve. Minutes later, he collapsed when one of his players approached him, hugged him and whispered: “We are world champions.”

Scaloni almost never loses his cool. He didn’t do that when he was bombarded with criticism for his lack of experience managing Argentina. Nor did he when Kylian Mbappe’s goals threatened the country’s World Cup hopes four years ago. And he remains the same today, as he faces the challenge of trying to repeat as World Cup champion.

Those who know him say Scaloni learned to control his temper thanks to a hobby outside of football. Since retiring as a player, he spends two to three hours a day cycling, a sport he took up on the recommendation of his friend, former Spanish tennis player Carlos Moyá.

As he cycles through the mountains of Mallorca, the Spanish island where he lives, or along the paths of his hometown of Pujato in the northwest of the South American country, Scaloni tries to clear his head and think.

«On the bike you can think about your team, your opponent, how to prepare for the race. It really clears my head. I use it as therapy,» Scaloni said in several interviews. “It’s a good escape…it helps me lower my expectations and calm down.”

In a few weeks, Scaloni will become the third coach to lead Argentina to consecutive World Cups, following in the footsteps of César Luis Menotti (1978 and 1982) and Carlos Bilardo (1986 and 1990), both also champions. But the youngest of the three does not think he deserves comparisons with the others.

«I don’t think we are on the same level. They built careers, they defined an era,» Scaloni has said repeatedly.

Having no previous experience managing professional teams, Scaloni took over the team on an interim basis in 2018 following Argentina’s debacle in Russia, where the Argentinians were eliminated in the round of 16 months earlier. Meanwhile, the Argentine Football Association (AFA) was considering Mauricio Pochettino or Diego Simeone as candidates for the senior national team.

«Scaloni? He can’t even direct traffic,» Diego Maradona, who led Argentina to a World Cup title in 1986, said at the time.

The inexperienced coach stayed on and Argentina went on to win the 2021 Copa América and successfully progress through the 2022 World Cup qualifiers.

In Qatar, Scaloni weathered a storm of criticism after a disappointing opening match against Saudi Arabia, revamped the team mid-tournament with the addition of then-rookies Enzo Fernández, Alexis Mac Allister and Julián Álvarez, and, most importantly, unleashed the best version of Lionel Messi at a World Cup.

«The criticism was normal, I had not coached anywhere. (Maradona) was not far wrong,» Scaloni acknowledged shortly after raising the cup, without any resentment towards the star who died in 2020.

Brazil was the last world champion to repeat this in 1962.

Scaloni knows that the demands will now be the same or even greater. He will have to defend the title as his star player nears retirement at the age of 38, while also dealing with turmoil within Argentina’s football establishment.

«The World Cup is very, very difficult. To win a World Cup, many things have to come together, and not just play well,» Scaloni said in a recent interview with CONMEBOL. «Every time Argentina goes to a World Cup, it will try to reach its full potential. It is very difficult, but not impossible.»

Scaloni made it clear to his players that being world champions did not guarantee a place in the national team and demanded that they never let their guard down.

“I don’t dwell on past achievements; you always have to keep looking ahead,” he said at the end of 2025. “With this jersey you don’t have time to relax and think that your place is safe.”

The Albiceleste won the Copa América in 2021 and 2024 and finished first in the South American qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, overcoming the absence of Messi, who missed several matches due to physical problems.

“Argentina has achieved the best thing a national team can achieve: being a team,” said Jorge Valdano, world champion with Argentina in 1986, in a recent interview with The Associated Press. «It is a team with very clear leadership, that of the coach and Leo Messi, and players who have not lost their hunger.»

Twenty of the 26 players from the 2022 squad, including Messi, were included by Scaloni in the provisional squad of 55 players for this tournament.

After beating Brazil in the World Cup qualifier in November 2023, Scaloni shocked Argentina fans when he cast doubt on his future. “It’s not goodbye, but I have to think about it, because the bar is very high and it is difficult to continue.”

The coach remained in his position, claiming that he was overwhelmed by his elderly parents’ health problems at the time. However, rumors circulated about alleged dissatisfaction between the coach and some players due to their unprofessional behavior during the team’s training camp before the defeat to Uruguay in the qualifiers, ahead of the match against Brazil.

Scaloni had to deal with unrest within the Argentine football organization. The AFA leadership is facing allegations of corruption and growing internal discontent over changes to the competition format and refereeing decisions.

Preparations for the World Cup have also been called into question due to friendly matches organized by the AFA against teams ranked very low in the FIFA rankings such as Indonesia, Puerto Rico, Angola, Mauritania and Zambia, among others. The final two tests are in June against Honduras and Iceland, who failed to qualify for the tournament.

The coach, who is negotiating a contract extension, avoided complaining publicly. «Playing against the best doesn’t guarantee anything, and neither does this. We have to face whatever happens and be positive,» he said. “The results will show whether we made the right choice or not.”

Argentina starts against Algeria in Group J on June 16 in Kansas City. They will play against Austria on June 22 and Jordan on June 27.

Scaloni remains calm, just like four years ago. He knows very well that the Argentinians expect him to defend the title and that they are not prepared for disappointment.

«We are doing well, we are enthusiastic. We are aware that our opponents will play differently against us because we are the reigning champions. The most important thing is that we will be there. After that it is football and anything can happen.»

Published on May 23, 2026