It is so incredibly rare in today’s age of overhyped sporting events that a championship game lives up to its buildup. Sunday’s World Cup final delivered – and then some.
An estimated TV audience exceeding 1.5 billion was expected to tune in to the highly anticipated Argentina vs France showdown and they got a game for the ages.
Argentina held a comfy 2-0 lead in the 80th minute. Any reasonable viewer assumed Lionel Messi was about to lift the only trophy that had eluded him in his illustrious career and be crowned – at least by many fans and pundits (including this one) – as the greatest player of all time.
But sports defies expectations, which is what makes it so wonderful. Messi’s coronation would have to wait just a little bit longer.
Kylian Mbappe, the young French superstar and Messi’s teammate at Paris Saint Germain, scored on a penalty kick in the 80th minute and a brilliant equalizing goal a minute later, forcing extra time.
Those final dramatic moments of regulation left fans incredulous. Crowd roars could be heard all over South Florida, from DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale to Manolo in Miami Beach to the Publix on Monza Ave. in Coral Gables, where a friend reported that an elderly woman dropped an apple after being startled by the celebration in the produce section, where shoppers and staff were watching on cellphones.
Messi made more magic in extra time, pouncing on a rebound to give Argentina a 3-2 lead. Not to be outdone, Mbappe scored his third goal with another penalty shot, sending the game to a shootout.
Argentina finally clinched the championship 4-2 on penalties, and 35-year-old Messi got his first World Cup trophy after 17 years and 172 games in a sky blue and white jersey, after playing all 690 minutes of this World Cup, after carrying the weight of his country on his slender frame for nearly two decades.
Watching Messi celebrate with his children and jump up and down with that golden trophy over his head is a moment sports fans around the world will never forget.
He became the first player in history to score in every knockout round of a single World Cup. Finally, he can step out of the shadow of his countryman and icon Diego Maradona.
The tournament is over, and the debate should be over, too: Messi is the greatest player of all time.
It should not have taken a World Cup trophy to cement that mythical title for the Argentine superstar, but now that he finally has one, there are no more holes in the argument.
Yes, Pele won more World Cup titles. The Brazilian legend wowed the world as a 17-year-old at the 1958 World Cup when he scored in the quarterfinal against Wales, had a hat trick in the semifinals against France and added two in the championship game over Sweden. He will always be synonymous with greatness and his contributions to the game are immeasurable.
Maradona transcended the sport. The charismatic legend led Argentina to the World Cup title in 1986 and was a cultural icon in his country.
Zinedine Zidane and Cristiano Ronaldo also belong in the conversation of the best players in history.
But Messi took greatness to another level. He not only scores goals; he is unselfish and has the vision and skill to deliver passes nobody else in the game can see. His control, balance, and dazzling dribbling sequences mesmerize audiences wherever he plays. He has won every scoring title and trophy there is to win; and done it over a sustained period of time.
As colorful commentator Ray Hudson wrote on Twitter Sunday: “All the cynics, haters and critics out there, keep throwing your bricks and stones at him. Leo Messi takes them and builds yet another monument to his genius with them! The inarguable, indisputable, GREATEST of ALL TIME!!!! Magesteeeeeeerial Lionel Messi!!!!”
We are privileged to watch him play. And, if David Beckham and Jorge and Jose Mas get their way, we may get to see Messi play up close in an Inter Miami jersey at DRV PNK Stadium starting next summer.
Crazy as that may sound, conversations have been ongoing with Messi about his future after his contract expires with PSG in June 2023. He loves Miami, vacations here, and owns a home here. But PSG wants him back. Barcelona would love for him to return there and end his career where it started.
Time will tell. In the meantime, let’s enjoy memories of Sunday’s final. This World Cup that began four weeks ago in Qatar amid controversy and outcry over everything from beer bans to weather to human rights violations ended with one of the greatest finals – if not THE greatest – of all time.
Before we turn our focus back to the holidays and other sports, let’s take a moment to look back at what we will remember from the 2022 World Cup.
The ban on beer on the eve of the tournament.
The ban on rainbow armbands, which captains had planned to wear in protest of Qatar’s human rights violations.
The final whistle in the Morocco-Portugal quarterfinal, which meant Morocco had become the World Cup’s first African semifinalist and Cristiano Ronaldo, benched in key games, would go home disappointed once again.
Netherlands’ amazing comeback against Argentina in the quarterfinals. The Dutch trailed 2-0 and made it 2-2 in the final eight minutes plus injury time. Wout Weghorst’s 100th minute goal was one of the most special of the tournament, even though Argentina wound up winning on penalties.
Spain opening the World Cup with a 7-0 rout of Costa Rica and never winning again.
Japan’s run to the Round of 16. The Samurai Blue won fans around the world with their spirited play and their fans’ tradition of cleaning up after themselves with trash bags in the stands.
Goncalo Ramos starting in place of Ronaldo and scoring a hat trick for Portugal.
The Ghana team entrance, joyful with dancing and musical instruments.
Iran team’s silence during its national anthem.
Germany’s early exit in the group stage.
Richarlison’s jaw-dropping, acrobatic scissor kick goal for Brazil against Serbia.
Christian Pulisic sacrificing his body to score for Team USA against Iran and carry the Americans into the knockout round.
The shocking untimely death of sports journalist Grant Wahl, one of the most respected, beloved writers in the business. I covered six World Cups with him and know how much this sport meant to him. He died on press row in extra time of the Argentina-Netherlands game. His last printed words were a Tweet about a Dutch set piece. He would have loved Sunday’s final. RIP Grant.
Finally, Saudi Arabia’s stunning upset of Argentina in their opening match at Lusail Stadium, the site of Sunday’s final. More than 40,000 Argentine fans left in disbelief after the loss to the Saudis. Sunday, they left the same stadium singing, dancing, and in tears of joy.
Happiest of all was Messi, finally hoisting the trophy he so rightly deserves.
The next World Cup is three and a half years away in the United States, Mexico and Canada. Opening game is June 8, 2026. Miami is one of the host cities. It can’t get here soon enough!
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