Recap: Argentina beats Switzerland in exciting final World Cup game for KC
It’s one last hurrah for Kansas City soccer fans on Saturday, the day of the last World Cup game in Kansas City.
For a month, supporters of at least 10 different nations have come through the metro to cheer on their teams at Kansas City (Arrowhead) Stadium, attend the popular FIFA Fan Festival, try the city’s favorite barbecue and more.
We’ve seen a record-tying hat trick, a scoreless match, a royal visit, multiple stoppage-time goals and more unforgettable moments.
Now it’s all coming to a close — for KC, at least — with a quarterfinal between Argentina and Switzerland, plus the final day of Fan Fest and a performance by All-American Rejects on the festival grounds.
We’ll be sharing everything you need and want to know from all the action around KC. Follow along all evening long.
Final: Argentina 3, Switzerland 1
Argentina has punched its ticket to the semifinals and the matchup against England.
Another for Argentina
The final Swiss attack turns into an underline goal for Argentina, taking the game to 3-1 and locking in Argentina’s trip to the semifinals.
Next game up
The winner of this game will be playing England for a spot in the final on Wednesday in Atlanta. If it’s Argentina who goes through, that’ll be two of the KC area’s base-camp teams going head to head in the semifinal.
Argentina scores
Argentina’s Julián Álvarez finds the back of the net to put the defending World Cup team up 2-1 with just a few minutes left to go. Not a single Argentine fan is sitting down
Some unease among Argentina fans
An uneasy feeling has hit the majority-Argentina crowd as we approach the second half of extra time. Despite Switzerland only playing 10 men due to a red card, Argentina haven’t been able to capitalize and are now 15 minutes away from the match being decided in a penalty shootout.
Going into extra time
With a tie at the end of regular time, Kansas City’s quarterfinal game will head into 30 minutes extra time.
Switzerland scores, then loses player
Switzerland has made it even, scoring their first goal of the match from Dan Ndoye. But then Breel Embolo got his second yellow card for simulation, or attempting to get a foul called on another player. Now the Swiss will play with 10 men.
A Sporting KC connection
As Switzerland faces Argentina in a World Cup, Sporting Kansas City head coach Raphael Wicky is watching with more than a passing interest.
Wicky, 49, made 75 international appearances for Switzerland and helped end the country’s long World Cup drought when he played in the 2006 tournament in Germany, columnist Sam McDowell reported earlier this week.
The connection runs deeper than shared nationality.
Wicky has coached 10 players on the current Switzerland squad, including 29-year-old forward Breel Embolo, who has two goals and two assists in this tournament. He also played alongside current Switzerland head coach Murat Yakin in 33 national team matches.
More celebrities at stadium
It’s a star-studded affair at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City. In addition to a few “Ted Lasso” cast members, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and well-known streamer iShowSpeed have been spotted in attendance. Mahomes generated a pretty big cheer in the stadium when he was shown on the Jumbotron.
Over 125,000 are watching along with iShowSpeed on YouTube. Don’t be fooled by the Argentina jersey: He’s been wearing the jerseys of the teams he’s hoping lose to try and put a curse them. Will it work for Argentina?
Argentina 1, Switzerland 0
Argentina has started things off hot, getting the first goal at 10 minutes off a header from Alexis Mac Allister. It’s the first Argentina goal at Arrowhead from anyone not named Lionel Messi, after the superstar’s first-round hat trick.
Kickoff!
And the final Kansas City World Cup match is underway.
Ted Lasso is in Kansas City
The cast of Apple TV’s Ted Lasso is at the match to hype up the crowd minutes before the match begins. The cast has been in Kansas City this weekend to promote the new season, which debuts on August 5.
Ted Lasso is of course portrayed by Kansas City’s own Jason Sudeikis. The latest season was partially filmed in Kansas City last year.
Arrowhead is filled with a sea of blue and white
The stands are filling up as Argentina and Switzerland take the pitch for warmups. It is looking like it may be pretty close to feeling like a home game for Argentina.
Messi arrives at Kansas City Stadium
Lionel Messi and Argentina opened our World Cup experience at Kansas City (Arrowhead) Stadium. In that match he scored his first World Cup hat trick. He’s in the building now. Will we see another historic performance?
One hour to kickoff in Kansas City
Thousands of fans are filing into Kansas City (Arrowhead) Stadium. The majority wearing light blue and white for Argentina.
England bests Norway
England beat Norway 2-1 to punch their ticket to the FIFA World Cup Semifinal. Jude Bellingham and the English team are honorary Kansas Citians while they maintain their base camp in Prairie Village. They will face the winnter of tonight’s match in Kansas City between Argentina and Switzerland.
All eyes on England-Norway
Even as fans file into Arrowhead, many are stopping to watch the other quarterfinal now in progress, between England and Norway. The winner of the two teams will face the winner of tonight’s KC game for a spot in the World Cup Semifinal.
The concourse at the stadium is packed with people standing and watching TVs playing the game, adding to the sweltering heat.
Few fans walk to game
Though traffic has generally been better around the stadium since the last time Argentina was in town, some fans are still taking matters into their own hands, seen walking along the road two hours leading up to kickoff.
Hot day in KC
It’s been a warm Saturday for the final day of World Cup activities, with a high of 89 degrees, or around 95 as a real-feel temperature.
Fan Fest officials were warning about overheating earlier in the day and issuing reminders about hydrating, which will continue to be important as fans move to Kansas City (Arrowhead) Stadium.
Fan Fest hits capacity
Though it’s been popular, the free experience on the grounds of the National World War I Museum and Memorial had never hit its 25,000-person capacity — until today.
The festival had to stop accepting general admission visitors for some time during the All-American Rejects concert, but it opened back up soon after.
The organizers have previously said more than 200,000 people have come through the festival grounds over the course of the event.
This story was originally published July 11, 2026 at 7:07 PM with the headline "Recap: Argentina beats Switzerland in exciting final World Cup game for KC."
