Defending World Cup champion Argentina to open tournament vs. Algeria

With eyes across the globe focused on 48 balls being plucked from four bowls, next year's World Cup came into focus Friday when a draw determined Argentina and Lionel Messi will start their title defence against Algeria.

Teams from five-time champion Brazil to newcomers Cape Verde, Curacao, Jordan and Uzbekistan learned their group stage opponents in the expanded 48-nation, 104-game tournament that starts June 11 in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

Canada drew into Group B and will face Switzerland, 2022 host Qatar and the winner of a playoff in March involving Italy, Bosnia, Wales and Northern Ireland.

"Exciting for the island, for the people there. They're so proud," said Dick Advoccat, the 78-year-old Dutchman leading Curacao, a Caribbean island nation with a population of 150,000, into an opener against four-time champion Germany.

The ceremony included U.S. President Donald Trump receiving a peace prize awarded by FIFA. Trump, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney selected the balls of their own countries from bowls during a ceremony at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and Sheinbaum drew more applause than Trump.

The lead-in show was almost as long as a soccer match, with the actual draw for the expanded 48-nation tournament starting in the 87th minute. Balls with team names were plucked by famous North American athletes Tom Brady, Shaquille O'Neal, Aaron Judge and Wayne Gretzky.

Three-time champion Argentina opens on June 16 at either Kansas City, Missouri, or Santa Clara, California. Specific sites for all group stage games and kickoff times were to be announced Saturday. The Albiceleste then face Austria and Jordan in Group J. Argentina surprisingly lost its 2022 opener