Messi scores on a penalty as Argentina beats Iceland 3-0 in its final World Cup tune-up

AUBURN, Ala. (AP) — Lionel Messi is ready for his sixth World Cup.

After recovering from a muscle injury, the captain of the reigning world champions played 20 minutes and scored a penalty in Argentina’s 3-0 victory over Iceland on Tuesday in its final tune-up match before the World Cup.

Messi, recovered from muscle fatigue and a slight strain in his left hamstring that he suffered in his last appearance with Inter Miami on May 24, started the game from the bench.

Just days before his 39th birthday and his sixth World Cup, Messi came on in the 70th minute and he scored a penalty kick after Lautaro Martínez was fouled inside the area.

Messi, the all-time top scorer for the Argentine national team with 117 goals, converted the penalty with a high left-footed shot in the 72nd minute.

Argentina, seeking its fourth World Cup title after those won in 1978, 1986, and 2022, will open its tournament against Algeria on June 16 in Kansas City in Group J, which also includes Austria and Jordan.

It was the second match between the two nations. The first one was at the 2018 World Cup, when the European side managed a 1-1 draw in which Messi missed a penalty.

Fans cheer before the first half of an international friendly match between Argentina and Iceland, Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in Auburn, Ala. (AP Photo/Butch Dill)

Fans cheer before the first half of an international friendly match between Argentina and Iceland, Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in Auburn, Ala. (AP Photo/Butch Dill)

Argentina forward Lionel Messi reacts after a missed goal during the second half of an international friendly match against Iceland, Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in Auburn, Ala. (AP Photo/Butch Dill)

Argentina forward Giuliano Simeone (17) kicks an attempt on goal as Iceland Daniel Gudjohnsen (21) defends during the first half of an international friendly match, Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in Auburn, Ala. (AP Photo/Butch Dill)

Argentina forward Lionel Messi (10) reacts after scoring on a free kick during the second half of an international friendly match against Iceland, Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in Auburn, Ala. (AP Photo/Butch Dill)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The United States launched airstrikes early Wednesday against Iran after blaming Tehran for the crash of an American attack helicopter, prompting new attacks from Iran and further widening the retaliatory strikes that threaten to derail talks to end the war.

Iran launched attacks on sites in Bahrain and Kuwait, which both sounded alerts and fired air defenses in response. Jordan also reported shooting down five missiles that Iran shot at an air base hosting U.S. forces.

Since the U.S. and Israel started the war with attacks on Iran on Feb. 28, the conflict has shaken the global economy, driven up energy prices around the world and made many basics, including food, more expensive. Brent crude oil, the international standard, was at more than $91 a barrel on Wednesday, up more than 25% since the start of the war.

Officials have been unable to turn the April ceasefire into a deal to permanently end the conflict, particularly as Israel intensifies and expands its military campaign in Lebanon against the Iran-backed militant Hezbollah group.

The downing of the Apache attack helicopter and the strikes by the U.S. military further strained the ceasefire, a day after Iran and Israel exchanged fire for the first time since the fragile truce took effect. Iranian state television said Tuesday that the Israeli attacks killed at least two members of the country’s air-defense units.

Fighter jets from the U.S. Air Force and Navy conducted the strikes in Iran, the U.S. military’s Central Command said, targeting “air defense, ground control stations, and surveillance radar sites.” Iran acknowledged strikes around Bandar Abbas and Qeshm Island, but gave no details on the damage.

“The operation was a proportional response to recent attacks on U.S. forces and international commercial ships transiting regional waters,” Central Command said.

Iran’s top diplomat said foreign military forces near its territory “are at constant risk” and later vowed that there would be a response to the new U.S. strikes.

Iranian forces “will leave no attack or threat unanswered,” Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on X. “Leave our region if you want to be safe.”

Jordan said on Wednesday that it shot down five incoming missiles launched by Iran, which Tehran said targeted the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base. The base has hosted American F-35 fighter jets and other aircraft.

Jordan’s state-run Petra news agency carried a military statement saying there were no injuries in the attack and that explosives experts had examined the debris from the interceptions.

Guards on board a cargo ship off the coast of Yemen in the Gulf of Aden exchanged fire with gunmen in a small boat and repelled their attack, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the shooting. Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels have said they will resume their attacks against Israel-affiliated ships moving through the Red Sea. Somali pirates have also become more active in the region.

The U.S. Army AH-64 Apache attack helicopter crashed near the Strait of Hormuz after colliding with an Iranian drone, according to a U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation.

It wasn’t clear whether the collision was intentional, and official statements only said the crash is under investigation. CNN, CBS News and other outlets earlier reported the collision.

In the first known operation of its kind by the American military, a drone boat rescued both of the helicopter's aviators at 3:30 a.m. local time Tuesday, about two hours after their aircraft went down during a patrol off the coast of Oman, U.S. Central Command said.

U.S. President Donald Trump said both crew members were “safe and uninjured.”

The U.S. service members were spotted and picked up by a drone boat that took them to another location on the water, where they were picked up by a helicopter, said Capt. Tim Hawkins, a spokesman for U.S. Central Command.

AH-64 Apache helicopters have been a key asset for the American military as it enforces a blockade on Iranian crude oil shipments and tankers, seeking to pressure Tehran into a deal. The helicopters have also been used by the United Arab Emirates to shoot down Iranian drones.

Before he accused Iran of downing the U.S. helicopter, Trump expressed renewed optimism over negotiations with Iran, but didn’t say why there was reason for optimism.

Mediators, led predominantly by Pakistan, have been trying for weeks to get a deal across the line. However, both Iran and the U.S. have taken hard-line positions.

The U.S. wants to see Iran give up its stockpile of highly enriched uranium, which is believed to have been buried by American airstrikes during the 12-day war in 2025. But Iran is refusing that and demanding relief from sanctions. It also wants the release of frozen assets even before a final agreement is in place, something rejected by Trump.

Israel's military said on Wednesday it launched multiple strikes in southern Lebanon over the past day, targeting Hezbollah infrastructure.

The continued fighting between Israel and Hezbollah is still a top Iranian priority, while Lebanon's government has been taking an increasingly hard line against Hezbollah but remains unable to disarm the powerful group.

Associated Press writers David Rising in Bangkok; Michelle L. Price in New York; Will Weissert in Washington; Bassem Mroue in Beirut; Munir Ahmed in Islamabad; and Russ Bynum in Savannah, Georgia, contributed to this report.

People take shelter as air raid sirens warn of incoming Iranian missiles in Ramat Gan, Israel, Monday, June 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

A projectile streaks through the sky over central Israel during an Iranian missile attack, Sunday, June 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

A cleric checks his cell phone on stage in front of a screen displaying portraits of the late Iranian revolutionary founder Ayatollah Khomeini, left, late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, center, and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, during a pro-government gathering in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, June 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

A woman walks past a mural depicting a U.S. aircraft carrier under missile attack in downtown Tehran, Iran, Monday, June 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)