Argentina and Austria meet Monday, June 22 in a 2026 World Cup Group A clash at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, kicking off at 1:00 p.m. ET on FOX.
The defending champions enter as heavy favorites, with Lionel Messi already turning in a hat trick performance in the opener that has the entire tournament on notice.
Fox Sports wagering analyst Chris “The Bear” Fallica has his Match Day 12 World Cup best bets locked in across all four games, and bettors can back them with bonuses at the four sportsbooks listed below.
At BetOnline, Argentina open at -170 on the moneyline, with Austria the long shot at +500.
Fox Sports Argentina vs Austria Predictions, Best Bets
- Both Teams to Score – No (-120) – Austria’s 3-1 opener included an own goal and a 90+12 penalty; they won’t generate enough to beat Argentina’s defense.
- 1st Half Draw (+135) – Argentina had just 1.3 xG against Algeria despite Messi’s hat trick; expect a cautious, grindy first 45 minutes.
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FOX Sport Argentina vs Austria Prediction 1
Fallica lands on Both Teams to Score – No at -120 as his lead play in the Argentina vs Austria matchup on Match Day 12.
Austria’s 3-1 scoreline against Jordan looked convincing on paper, but that result included an own goal and a penalty awarded in the 90+12 minute – the actual attacking output was far weaker than the scoreline suggested.
Messi delivered a magical hat trick against Algeria in Argentina’s World Cup opener, but the underlying numbers told a different story – Argentina generated just 1.3 xG for the entire match, a figure that underscores how elite those finishes were rather than how dominant the attack was.
The honest qualifier sits right next to that – Austria under Ralf Rangnick has quietly built a compact defensive structure that allowed fewer than 1.0 non-penalty xG per match in pre-tournament play, and they will sit deep against the defending champions.
As Fallica noted in his Match Day 12 schedule breakdown, the Austrian attack simply cannot be trusted to find the net against a backline of this quality.
Fallica put it plainly, saying this match should be a grind – and at -120, fading both teams to score is a reasonable price for that narrative.
Pick: Both Teams to Score – No (-120)
FOX Sport Argentina vs Austria Prediction 2
Fallica’s second play is the 1st Half Draw at +135, a plus-money angle built on the cautious game-script logic that governs big-tournament group stage matches between a heavy favorite and a defensive-minded underdog.
Argentina had no urgency to open up against Algeria, and the same template applies here against Austria’s organized press.
Both things can be true simultaneously – Argentina are significantly the better team and will likely win this match, and the first 45 minutes will almost certainly be a tactical chess match where neither side commits to a decisive attacking push.
Austria will defend deep from the opening whistle, and Argentina won’t overextend with three points already in the bank.
The +135 price on a first-half stalemate reflects the public’s tendency to fade draws in matches involving elite teams, which is exactly where the value sits here.
For the full CBS World Cup predictions and competing expert analysis for Monday’s slate, that breakdown adds further context on why the cautious first-half approach from both sides is widely expected.
Pick: 1st Half Draw (+135)
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