This is, in all likelihood, the last of him. Lionel Messi, 39, walks out at MetLife Stadium on Sunday for what is widely expected to be his final World Cup match, and Argentina against Spain is the tie the whole tournament has been pointing towards.
Argentina arrive as holders. Spain arrive as reigning European champions. Spain go in as Europe's top-ranked side, Argentina as South America's No 1, per Al Jazeera. One of them leaves New Jersey with the trophy.
The road to New Jersey
Neither side took the scenic route. Spain saw off France 2-0 in the semi-final and have been miserly throughout, conceding just once across seven games, per Fox Sports. It is the meanest defence left in the competition.
Argentina had to dig deeper, and by contrast they have made a habit of the dramatic. England led 1-0 and looked in control until Messi took the game by the scruff of the neck. He set up Enzo Fernandez's equaliser in the 85th minute, then teed up Lautaro Martinez to head a stoppage-time winner. Two goals to one, and through.
Messi's last dance
The story writes itself, and the numbers lean his way. Messi goes into the final on eight goals, per Al Jazeera, level at the top of the scoring charts, and a strike on Sunday would settle the Golden Boot in his favour. He scored Argentina's first five of the tournament and now sits on 21 career World Cup goals, per Fox Sports.
Nobody has leaned on one player quite like this. His two assists sank England when the semi-final was slipping away, and if Argentina lift the trophy the story will be his. If they fall short, the sympathy will be too.
Across from him stands the teenager tipped to inherit the game. Lamine Yamal, 19, has been Spain's spark, the Barcelona forward around whom Luis de la Fuente has built his attack. The 39-year-old chasing one last coronation, the 19-year-old trying to gatecrash it: the final has its subplot before a ball is kicked.
Spain will not be overawed
This is no fairytale opponent. Spain have arguably been the tournament's most complete side. De la Fuente's team are unbeaten in their last 14 major-tournament matches, 13 wins and a solitary draw, per Fox Sports, and they defend like a side that trusts itself. Rodri, the Manchester City midfielder, is the engine that makes them tick. Let him set the tempo and it could be a long afternoon for Argentina. Crowd him out, and the holders have a route back in.
It shapes up as patience against inspiration: Spain's control against Argentina's habit of finding a moment when it matters most.
What is at stake
There is spectacle around the football, too. Al Jazeera reports that Donald Trump will attend and present the trophy, with a Super Bowl-style halftime show featuring Madonna, Justin Bieber and Shakira, a first for a World Cup final. Some 82,500 are expected inside MetLife.
It is the final act of the 2026 World Cup, the biggest stage the game has. Argentina want back-to-back titles and a fourth star. Spain, with one world crown to their name, want a second, and the European and world double to go with it.
And Messi wants one more. Kickoff is 3pm ET, 8pm in the UK, live on FOX. Whether it ends in gold or in tears, this feels like the last time a World Cup will be built around him.
Sources
- Al Jazeera
- Fox Sports
- Yahoo Sports
- Cover photo: Bryan Berlin / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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