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EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Spain is back on top.
Spain beat Lionel Messi and Argentina 1–0 in extra time in the World Cup final in front of a sell-out crowd of 80,663 fans at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. Argentina played with 10 men for all of extra time after Enzo Fernández got a second yellow card late in regulation.
Spain came out on top of FIFA’s biggest World Cup ever, with 104 matches and 48 teams in 16 host cities. The victory marks Spain’s second World Cup star after previously winning the tournament in 2010. Spain held possession for much of the match and just about entirely shut down Argentina’s offense. Spain only conceded one goal all tournament.
In the first half, Spain looked more aggressive, but neither side found the back of the net before FIFA’s Super Bowl-style halftime show with Shakira, Madonna, BTS, Justin Bieber, Burna Boy, and Gustavo Dudamel. The halftime lasted more than 27 minutes due to the 12-minute show; international soccer rules say halftime should not exceed 15 minutes.
In the second half, Argentina still struggled to get possession, then suffered another blow with Fernández being sent off.
The match was scoreless after 90 minutes thanks to Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez, who ended the match with 11 saves, setting a new record for a World Cup final. The match went into extra time, and shortly after the mid-point break, Spain forward Ferran Torres scored the match’s first goal. It proved to be the only one, and the 2024 Euros champions came out on top.
After the final whistle, a fight broke out between players on the pitch. Argentina’s Leandro Paredes grabbed the throat of one Spanish player and pushed another to the ground. Paredes was red-carded after the brawl.
Spain coach Luis de la Fuente, 65, is now the oldest coach to ever win the World Cup.
The playing conditions at outdoor MetLife Stadium were a big concern coming into the match. New York and New Jersey experienced a heat wave earlier this month, poor air quality from smoke caused by Canadian wildfires this week, and heavy flooding from storms on Saturday.
The soccer gods stepped in, and the extreme weather had settled by Sunday. The temperature was around 80 degrees at kickoff with a “moderate” air quality index of around 60. The sun was strong, but there was a nice breeze on the upper concourse.
On Saturday, France’s Kylian Mbappé took the lead over Messi in the Golden Boot race in a 6–4 loss to England in the third-place match in Miami. Mbappé scored two goals to bring his tournament total to 10. Messi went into Sunday’s final with eight goals and wasn’t able to add to it.
Spain will take home $51 million in prize money, while Argentina will earn $34 million. England won $30 million and France got $28 million in prize money.
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