Rugby International Match 2026 – USA vs Argentina XV – ARN Guide

International rugby competition arrives in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on Saturday. The USA Men’s Eagles will have home advantage against the Argentina XV in an uncapped fixture between a test team and a next-of-xv.

The match is being played as a high-level, non-Test exhibition game to help both teams build depth and prepare their players for the upcoming 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia. The USA will face France, Japan and Samoa in Pool E of the tournament while Argentina (Los Pumas) face Canada, Fiji and Spain in Pool C.

The fixture will enable the USA to integrate newer players into established Eagles roles, test out different combinations, and evaluate athletes under intense pressure. It will happen against a reputable opponent in Florida after a ten year USA Eagles absence in the state.

The Argentina XV is officially Argentina’s “A” side but is, in actuality, the homeland development team. This game gives their younger, up-and-coming Super Rugby Americas players crucial game time against a senior international team.

 

NOTES

• The USA are unbeaten in 2026. The Men’s Eagles defeated Portugal (30-29), Zimbabwe (31-15) and Spain (29-22) in World Rugby Nations Cup matches in July.
• The match is the first of 2026 for the Argentina XV.
• There is plenty of experience in the Eagles with a combined total of 237 caps.
• Scrum-half Ruben de Haas tops the cap count with 47 caps for the USA.
• Three USA players are uncapped: Ma’ake Muti, Tevita Naqali and David Coetzer. Muti was born in Tonga but moved to Hawaii in 2009. Naqali is from Nadroga, Fiji. He qualfieid for the USA via residency in 2025. Coetzer is from Plettenberg, Bay, South Africa. He is a former Junior Springbok who is moving towards being eligible for the Eagles in test matches.
• 21 of the 23 USA players featured in Major League Rugby (MLR) 2026. The Chicago Hounds lead with 7 players: 7 players (Abel, Den Hoedt, de Haas, Lopeti, O’Keeffe, Pifeleti, and Harvey)
• Center Dominic Besag has signed for the Sharks in the United Rugby Championship.
• The now defunct Anthem RC will have a fly half – fullback combination with Luke Carty and Julian Roberts starting at 10 and 15 respectively.
• Another MLR partnership comes in the form of Seattle Seawolves’ players Marno Redelinghuys and Paddy Ryan as the flankers. Redelinghuys is from South Africa and Ryan is from Ireland.
• Missing USA players include AJ MacGinty, Jack Oscaro, David Ainu’u, Kapeli Pifeleti, Cory Daniel, Joe Taufete’e, Ezekiel Lindenmuth, Nafi Ma’afu, Mitch Wilson, Chris Hilsenbeck and Conner Mooneyham.
• The Argentina XV is captained by flanker Nicolás D’Amorim. He earned his one cap thus far in July 2025 against Uruguay in Salta. He missed Super Rugby Americas (SRA) through injury.
• Federico Serpa makes the step up from Argentina U20s to seniors.
• Serpa and D’Amorim did not play in SRA 2026. The other 21 players in Galindo’s side did. Los Capibaras leads with 8 players. All four Argentine SRA teams have players involved as does Yacare with Joaquín Domínguez named as a replacement.
• The Tarucas duo of Thiago Sbrocco and Agustín Sarelli join D’Amorim in the back-row.
• The new-look 10-12 combination is a Capibaras partnership of Ignacio Dogliani and Bautista Estellés.
• Because it is an unofficial exhibition, players will not receive official international caps.
• The USA vs Argentina XV head-to-head record is completely deadlocked, with two draws and one win each during the 2016-2019 era of the Americas Rugby Championship (ARC). Prior to that, the Argentina XV played as the Argentina Jaguares.
• Argentina is unbeaten against the USA in capped test matches

 

PREDICTION

Under head coach Scott Lawrence, the USA Men’s Eagles play with a highly structured, data-driven, and physically punishing style built around alignment and relentless work rate. Lawrence, who has a unique background in computational mathematics and technology consulting, uses analytics to heavily shape the team’s identity and tactical decisions on the field. In contrast, Álvaro Galindo’s coaching style centers on high-octane speed, continuous player creativity, and intense physical combat. The Argentina XV are favorites to win in Fort Lauderdale.

 

LINE-UPS

USA
1 Payton Telea-Ilalio, 2 Shilo Klein, 3 Charlie Abel, 4 Jason Damm (capt.), 5 Nathan Den Hoedt, 6 Marno Redelinghuys, 7 Paddy Ryan, 8 Makeen Alikhan, 9 Ruben de Haas, 10 Luke Carty, 11 Joe Mano, 12 Dominic Besag, 13 Tavite Lopeti, 14 Mark O’Keeffe, 15 Julian Roberts

Replacements: 16 Alex Maughan, 17 Fakaosifolau Pifeleti, 18 Ma’ake Muti, 19 Tevita Naqali, 20 Brandon Harvey, 21 Lance Williams, 22 Ethan McVeigh, 23 David Coetzer

ARGENTINA XV
1 Nicolás Revol Pitt, 2 Martín Vaca, 3 Marcos Camerlinckx, 4 Rodrigo Fernández Criado, 5 Francisco Sluga, 6 Nicolás D’Amorim (capt.), 7 Agustín Sarelli, 8 Thiago Sbrocco, 9 Nicolás Viola, 10 Ignacio Dogliani, 11 Mateo Pasquini, 12 Bautista Estellés, 13 Tomás Elizalde, 14 Bautista Lescano, 15 Franco Rossetto

Replacements: 16 Juan Ignacio Greising Revol, 17 Diego Correa, 18 Enzo Avaca, 19 Joaquín Domínguez, 20 Felipe Villagrán, 21 Alejo Sugasti, 22 Federico Serpa, 23 Facundo Pueyrredón

 

 

MATCH INFO

Date: Saturday, August 15
Kickoff: 7:30pm (Eastern), 8:30pm (Argentina).
Venue: Miami FC Stadium, Fort Lauderdale, Florida (USA)
Broadcasts: ESPN, Disney + (AR)
Weather Forecast: Excessive Heat 33°C; Wind 13 km/h

 

MATCH OFFICIALS

Referee: Jérémy Rozier (France)
Assistant Referees: Pete Pender (Canada), Robin Kaluziniak (Canada)
Television Match Official: Cam Russell (Canada)

 

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