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.
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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)
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)
KRAKOW, Poland (AP) — Poland began two days of national mourning on Sunday, after a 24-year-old man with far-right views drove into a busy central square in Krakow and opened fire, killing six people and wounding 15 others before police shot and wounded him.
The attack, which Poland’s defense minister described as an “act of terror,” happened on Saturday in Main Square, which is in the heart of Krakow’s Old Town and is a major tourist hub in the country’s second-largest city.
By evening, mourners had left candles in memory of the victims. The square remained partially closed on Sunday morning as authorities continued their investigation.
St. Mary’s Trumpet Call, a traditional five-note melody played every hour from the highest tower of St. Mary’s Basilica on the Main Square, was paused overnight in tribute to the victims. It is the first time the call has been missed since World War II.
Authorities also found the bodies of the assailant’s sister, mother and father at the man’s family home in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski, a city about 150 kilometers (93 miles) northeast of Krakow. They likely died from gunshot wounds.
Marie-Ange Collaer wrote on Facebook that she and her family survived the shooting during a trip to Krakow from Brussels.
“We literally ran for our lives and managed to hide from the bullets flying around,” she wrote. “Lying on the floor in a shop like in a bad police movie whilst you hear bullets everywhere.”
Collaer said her family was shaky and “quite in shock” after returning to their hotel but everyone was grateful to be alive.
“We saw a few that did not make it, true horror,” she wrote.
U.K. resident Neil Thaxton and his wife, Nicky, also survived the attack.
“We had just walked through the main square and heard the gunshots,” Thaxton wrote on Facebook. “We thought it was fireworks then people started running, we went into a gift shop and the staff took us in the back of the shop and locked the doors and turned the lights off.”
The prosecutors said on Sunday they started an investigation for murder and attempted murder of numerous people, including police officers, with the act “constituting a terrorist offense.”
Four women and two men were killed in the Main Square shooting. Three of the women and one of the men were Polish, Krzysztof Jan Klęczar, the Malopolska regional governor, said on Sunday. A man from the U.K. and a woman from an unidentified foreign country were also among the dead.
The two police officers who stopped the gunman, in actions authorities hailed as heroic, remain in hospital. One of them is still in a coma while the other woke up from a coma, Klęczar said. Officials launched an appeal for blood donations for the benefit of the most seriously wounded officer.
“If it weren’t for the efficient and selfless intervention of these two young men, the number of victims could have been significantly higher,” Klęczar said.
Five non-Poles are among the wounded. They come from the U.K., Portugal, Russia, Germany and Austria.
The perpetrator is also in a critical state, having been operated on multiple times. There was confusion on Saturday about the shooter's age, with authorities first saying 24 and later 25. On Sunday they confirmed that he is 24.
Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński said the suspect holds “very radical” and “ultranationalistic” views.
“Everything indicates that he was fascinated by far-right ideologies,” Kierwiński said at a news conference.
Videos posted on social media by witnesses show people running away from the square to take cover on small streets nearby, as well as first responders trying to resuscitate victims. In one video, a police officer is seen repeatedly shooting the attacker, who is lying on the street, only to later slowly collapse to the ground himself.
Klęczar said the assailant's father owned over 10 guns legally and that the attacker also owned guns. Local officials in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski said they seized seven weapons from the family home, bringing the total number recovered to 11, including four found in the possession of the man in Krakow or in his car.
The Swit shooting club in Starachowice, where he is believed to have trained, issued a statement on Sunday saying it offered only “static shooting,” which involves firing from a fixed position at a stationary target. The club added that the suspect “was never trained in our club in the areas of dynamic, tactical or combat shooting.”
Around 411,000 people hold gun permits in Poland, which has a population of 37 million, and interest in gun ownership has been rising.
Mass shootings are uncommon in Poland. However, in mid-October three attacks at schools in the central province of Mazovia took place within four days, leaving one person dead and many wounded, including children. The young attackers used knives or other sharp objects.
The Krakow shooter’s military gear, guns and overall look were similar to those of other “extreme right lone actors” committing attacks around Europe, said Kacper Rekawek, a senior researcher at the International Center for Counterterrorism in The Hague.
“We have had attempts before, but now we can say that these kinds of attacks have become successful in Poland.”
Ciobanu reported from Warsaw, Poland. Associated Press journalist Stefanie Dazio in Berlin contributed to this report.
Police officers stand at the market square in Krakow, Poland, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2026, where several people were shot the day before. (AP Photo/Beata Zawrzel)
A woman lights a candle near the market square in Krakow, Poland, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2026, where several people were shot the day before. (AP Photo/Beata Zawrzel)
The flag of Poland flies at half-mast at the town hall in Krakow, Poland, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2026, where several people were shot the day before. (AP Photo/Beata Zawrzel)
Candles stand near the market square in Krakow, Poland, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2026, where several people were shot the day before. (AP Photo/Beata Zawrzel)
A back flag hangs at a house near the market square in Krakow, Poland, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2026, where several people were shot the day before. (AP Photo/Beata Zawrzel)
A police barrier tape is fixed at a broken storefront window near the market square in Krakow, Poland, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2026, where several people were shot the day before. (AP Photo/Beata Zawrzel)
Forensic investigators work next to police privacy screens in a cordoned off area after a shooter opened fire in a market square in Krakow, Poland, Saturday, Nov. 7, 2026, leaving people dead and injured, according to authorities. (AP Photo/Beata Zawrzel)
A forensic investigator takes photos next to the vehicle allegedly used by a shooter who opened fire in a market square in Krakow, Poland, Saturday, Nov. 7, 2026, leaving people dead and injured, according to authorities. (AP Photo/Beata Zawrzel)
