The defending World Cup champions are expected to draw massive crowds to North Texas, with an estimated 100,000 Argentina fans expected to visit the area for the match. It will be the first of two group-stage games Argentina will play at Dallas Stadium.
Messi is chasing history at the tournament. Argentina's captain aims to surpass Germany's Miroslav Klose and his 16 World Cup goals to become the competition's all-time leading scorer. Kylian Mbappé of France, a former Paris Saint-Germain teammate of Messi has 14 goals after scoring a brace against Senegal in Group I and could surpass the record with a hat trick against Iraq.
Like Mbappé, Norway's Erling Haaland already has two goals in the World Cup. He will be aiming to add to that tally against Senegal later today.
Argentina fan Javier Godoy captured the mood around Messi's return:
Oh - unbelievable - I think it speaks for itself every time he's on the pitch
The influx of fans is creating opportunities for local businesses, including young entrepreneur Fatima Aoun, who is selling custom necklaces.
Sunday's World Cup action brought blowout wins for Spain and Egypt, plus a draw for Cape Verde against Uruguay.
