Spain finally broke the dogged resistance of 10-man Argentina in extra time to win the men’s World Cup for the second time as a drab final ended in a dramatic fashion.
The Barcelona winger Ferran Torres scored the only goal of a disjointed game in the 106th minute, with Argentina’s cynical approach summed up by a mass confrontation sparked by Leandro Paredes pushing Gavi and Eric García to the ground after the final whistle, which led to the Boca Juniors midfielder following Enzo Fernández in being shown a red card.
The Chelsea midfielder had been sent off for a second yellow card just before the end of the initial 90 minutes, which left Argentina facing an even more difficult task in hanging on against superior opponents in extra time.
Donald Trump was booed when he walked out for the trophy presentation alongside Gianni Infantino, and appeared reluctant to move away from the players’ celebrations after both men handed the trophy to Spain’s captain, Rodri.
In another indication of the way Infantino is positioning Fifa, the trophies for individual awards such as the player of the tournament won by Rodri were handed over by Yasir al-Rumayyan, the governor of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund who is also the chair of Newcastle United.
Lionel Messi was applauded by the entire stadium as he collected his runners-up medal in floods of tears, but Argentina’s squad then turned their backs to face their own fans behind the goal as Spain’s players received their medals, an act of petulance that encapsulated their approach.
Spain’s hard-fought victory adds the World Cup to their European Championship triumph two years ago and is the second time they have held both titles, after they won the World Cup for the first time in 2010 as European champions.
King Felipe of Spain watched the game from Trump’s private box at the New York New Jersey Stadium in a gathering that included the leaders of the United States’ co-hosts of this tournament, the Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney, and Mexican president, Claudia Sheinbaum, along with the Fifa president and other members of the Trump family.
A World Cup full of thrilling matches and late comebacks ended in an underwhelming spectacle on the pitch, but also with deserved winners in Spain, who dominated completely having previously dismantled the favourites, France, in the semi-finals.
Spain had 20 shots to two from Argentina – both of which came towards the end of extra time as they at last pushed frantically for an equaliser their previous efforts did not merit.
Without a brilliant performance from Argentina’s goalkeeper, Emi Martínez, who made a series of superb saves, Spain would have been celebrating long before substitute Torres broke the deadlock in the 106th minute. Pedro Porro’s cross to the back post was kept in play brilliantly by Nico Williams, with Torres pouncing to fire beyond Martínez and send the Spanish into raptures.
Martínez had kept Argentina in the contest almost singlehandedly, but most neutrals and the many celebrities in attendance will have been pleased to see him finally beaten given his side’s cynical tactics.
Argentina did not even attempt a shot until the 115th minute when Messi, making his final World Cup appearance, struck the ball at the head of Mikel Merino.
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The climax of a World Cup that Infantino described on Friday as “the most incredible event in human history” appeared to be as much about show business as sport, with the spectacle on the pitch failing to live up to the razzmatazz off it for long periods.
In addition to the world leaders in Trump’s box, Fifa released an 11-page list of celebrities in attendance, many of whom were also booked to perform as the US major event culture took hold.
The match had kicked off six minutes late owing to the pre-game schmaltz being dialled up to levels that made the Super Bowl look subdued. Jennifer Hudson gave a spine-tingling rendition of the Star Spangled Banner followed by Robbie Williams singing the rather less well known Fifa anthem, Desire.
More bizarrely Tom Cruise then delivered what was no doubt intended as a stirring speech, which included such Fifa-sanctioned platitudes as: “Football is a force that unites people.”
In another departure from World Cup norms the trophy was delivered to the field pre-match by two previous winners, Spain’s Andrés Iniesta and Argentina’s Mario Kempes, from what was described as a Luis Vuitton trophy trunk in one of the many endorsement deals that has helped Fifa net revenue of $15bn from this tournament.
The much-hyped half-time show featuring among others Madonna, Justin Bieber and the actors Jason Sudeikis and Brendan Hunt playing their characters from Ted Lasso – the first time pop stars have been permitted on the pitch during a World Cup final – meant that the interval stretched to 27 minutes and 20 seconds. That will have suited Argentina, whose tactics were based on delaying and disrupting Spain throughout.
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