Mahrez announces international retirement following Algeria's elimination

Algeria was knocked out of the 2026 World Cup in the round of 16 by Switzerland, defeated 2-0 on American soil. Minutes after this debacle, Riyad Mahrez spoke in the Greens' locker room to officially announce his departure from the Algerian national team. The attacking midfielder, an emblematic figure of the squad for twelve years, thus closed a major chapter of Algerian football at the moment of the most bitter setback.