Argentine football celebrates the return of five world champions

Six World Cup winners with the Argentine national team at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar will play in the Argentine league . When Lionel Scaloni's team won the World Cup, only one of the 26 players called up was playing in the Argentine league: goalkeeper Franco Armani for River Plate.

The Argentine goalkeeper's role in the World Cup was symbolic, as the starting goalkeeper was Emiliano "El Dibu" Martínez, who was key in the final against France with his iconic save from Randal Kolo Muani in the final moments of extra time. Gonzalo Montiel, the Argentine hero by converting the decisive penalty in the final against France, headed to River Plate in 2024 after finishing his time at Sevilla . Another former full-back for the Seville team, Marcos Acuña, also joined River Plate in January 2025. The third player to win the World Cup with Argentina and now play for River Plate is former Betis player Germán Pezzella. All three players have played in the Club World Cup with Argentina and, along with Franco Armani, make up the list of four World Cup winners with Argentina in Qatar 2022 who now play for River Plate.

Without a doubt, one of the most notable returns to Argentine football has been that of the tireless Ángel Di Maria, who at 37 played in the last edition of the Champions League with Benfica. Following the Club World Cup with the Portuguese, "El Fideo" has returned to the club where he grew up and left for Europe when he was just 20 years old. Rosario Central celebrated a few days ago in style the return of a key player in the 2022 World Cup and the scorer of the only goal in the 2021 Copa América final against Brazil. "Coming home is more than anything I've done," said a tearful Di María during his first press conference as a new player for the Rosario team.

Leandro Paredes's presentation with Boca Juniors is not far behind. The Argentine midfielder received a massive reception in front of the Boca Juniors fans at the packed La Bombonera after his return home was officially announced yesterday, 12 years after his departure for the Old Continent, where he established himself as a regular starter at PSG for several seasons. Juan Román Riquelme, Argentine football legend and current president of Boca Juniors, has been fighting for the signing of the World Cup champion until he managed to reach an agreement with Roma for around €3.5 million to secure the services of the 30-year-old player.

Four of the six World Cup champions who play in the Argentine league play for River Plate.

The return of players who have had a successful run in Europe and are idolized after winning the World Cup has sparked excitement among Argentine fans, who are now hopeful of retaining the young local talent, even if it's practically a lost battle. "Obviously, losing them isn't good, but it's really good to see them on the weekends at the best clubs in the world," said coach Lionel Scaloni a few weeks ago when asked about Franco Mastantuono's departure to Real Madrid .