Argentines in Buenos Aires on Thursday (July 16) morning expressed happiness and pride after their team reached the World Cup final with a victory over England on Wednesday.

People on the streets of the capital spoke of relief and a "moment of great, great joy" following the win.

Argentina have proved they put their best foot forward in adversity, said coach Lionel Scaloni as his side staged another dramatic comeback to book a place in Sunday’s World Cup final.

The holders came from 1-0 down to equalize with five minutes left and then snatched a stoppage-time winner to beat England 2-1 and secure a meeting with Spain in New York at the weekend.

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People on the streets of Buenos Aires expressed relief and described a "moment of great, great joy" after Argentina's win against England.

VIDEO SHOWS: SOUNDBITES FROM LOCALS ON ARGENTINA MAKING IT TO THE WORLD CUP FINAL / STREET SCENES, TRAFFIC

RESENDING WITH COMPLETE SCRIPT

SHOWS: BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA (JULY 16, 2026) (REUTERS - Access all) (NIGHT SHOTS)

1. (MUTE) DRONE SHOT OF 9 DE JULIO AVENUE AND TRAFFIC

2. (MUTE) DRONE SHOT OF OBELISK MONUMENT

3. NEWSSTAND WITH OBELISK IN BACKGROUND

4. VARIOUS OF NEWSPAPERS SHOWING PREVIOUS DAY'S RESULT

5. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) 63-YEAR-OLD RETIREE, JOSE MARIA PEREZ, SAYING:

“And what does it feel like? I don’t know, I think it’s a moment of emotion when we all become one. You hug the person next to you even though you don’t know them, and you don’t care who they are or anything else—you hug them and jump up and down with them. It’s a moment of great, great joy. I think it’s when football really brings us together, ironically, in a very unusual way, as Serrat (Joan Manuel Serrat, the Spanish singer-songwriter) used to say: that celebration on the mountain where everyone comes together, where it doesn’t matter who is rich, who is poor, who can afford things and who can’t, or what anyone’s cultural background is. I think that’s beautiful, and it should be like that every day. But yes, the match was exactly that - it was wow, thrilling, almost heart-stopping.”

6. OBELISK MONUMENT, TRAFFIC

7. CITY SIGN READING (Spanish): "Argentina to the final"

8. VARIOUS OF FENCES AROUND OBELISK

9. GRAFFITI READING (Spanish): "On Sunday we have to win"

10. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) 23-YEAR-OLD SURGICAL INSTRUMENTALIST, IARA NUÑEZ, SAYING:

“Well, honestly, a lot of happiness. We’re really very happy. The emotion it gave me—I just burst into tears, I was shouting. It’s a tremendous joy for me and for the country, because imagine, with the whole issue of the English, it’s something that’s still deeply ingrained in us. And the fact that we beat them, in the same way it happened back then with Maradona, is really... It makes me very proud, very proud of my country. I love it. Honestly, I’m very happy, very joyful—my national team, my country, everything.”

11. VARIOUS OF CLEANING STAFF NEAR OBELISK

12. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) 24-YEAR-OLD EMPLOYEE, MALEK ABRAHAM NAMI, SAYING:

"“With yesterday’s victory—wow, what a relief. I was terrified that, first of all, we might lose the match, and that would have made me so angry. And on top of that, if we had lost, I was even more worried about the consequences from the fans. That scared me more. My mum, too—you have to remember that she lived through the World Cup back in the day, with Diego (Maradona). She got nervous because it brought back everything that happened at that time. And when we won, she sent a message to the family group chat: ‘We won, I can’t believe it.’ Uuuff, such a relief, really, yes. I mean, come on Argentina. But seriously, I swear, what a relief. We beat the English, with all the pressure of the World Cup, the pressure of beating the English in this match. And now we’re in the final—I still can’t believe it.”

13. VARIOUS OF BOTTLES OF ALCOHOLIC DRINKS USED DURING CELEBRATION

14. GLASS IN STREET

15. VARIOUS OF TRAFFIC