Mahrez retires from international football after Algeria's elimination by Switzerland

Algeria was eliminated from the 2026 World Cup in the round of 16, defeated 2-0 by Switzerland. Following the final whistle, Riyad Mahrez announced the end of his international career at 35, after twelve years of service with the Fennecs.

The Algerian press was quick to deliver a harsh assessment. La Gazette du Fennec stated bluntly: “The dream faded without glory. The Greens got everything wrong.” The newspaper highlighted a collective failure all the more unexpected given that the group stage — marked by a victory over Jordan and a 3-3 draw against Austria — had fueled genuine hopes.

Commentators agree on a recurring observation: Algeria’s historical difficulty in competing with European tactical blocks. Against Switzerland, defensive gaps in the center-back pairing and a lack of solidity in collective defensive organization were exposed by Swiss efficiency. For many editorialists, the manager’s tactical choices stifled the Greens’ attacking potential rather than unleashing it.

But it was Mahrez’s announcement that quickly overshadowed the result itself. The Al-Ahli winger bows out after being one of the architects of the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations triumph, the pinnacle moment of an entire generation. His last major tournament achievement remains that spectacular draw against Austria, where he was named man of the match.

Tributes from the national press are unanimous. Beyond the sporting disappointment, Algerian media see in this elimination the definitive closure of a cycle: that of a golden generation that had brought Algerian football to its continental peak. The generational transition, long delayed, now imposes itself as a necessity.