Aerolíneas Argentinas has flown the Argentine national football team to their 2026 FIFA World Cup base in Kansas City, on an aircraft, that is the “most Argentine plane in the world”, according to the airline,
The 11-hour flight covering more than 5,500 miles (8,851km) from Ezeiza International Airport to Missouri. The flight number for the Aerolineas Argentinas charter was 1978, an homage to the 1978 World Cup that Argentina won as the host nation over the Netherlands before more than 71,000 fans at River Plate Stadium in Buenos Aires.
The plane itself, an Airbus A330, also celebrated the Argentine squad with special livery. The No. 10 of Lionel Messi is featured on the tail amid the national team’s iconic blue and white stripes developed by Adidas.
The design also includes the captain’s armband applied over the engines and the three gold stars that pay tribute to the world titles won by Argentina, the last of them in Qatar 2022.
Argentina is the first of four national teams making their World Cup home base in the Kansas City metro to arrive. The Netherlands, England and Algeria — which will be at the University of Kansas in nearby Lawrence — are due to arrive this week.
Messi and Co. will be staying at the Origin Hotel near downtown Kansas City, Missouri. Fences have been built around the property and extra security provided for the team, while inside the relatively new hotel, signage, posters and other nods to the team known as La Albiceleste are ever-present, including huge images of some of the team’s biggest stars on the outside of the building.
