To quote a wordsmith far more eloquent than I:
They think it’s all over, it is now!
And that is that, the end. Spain are Champions of the World for a second time, 16 years after their first triumph in 2010, Ferran Torres’ goal in extra-time saw them past Lionel Messi’s Argentina, who’s attempts to control where the game’s destiny was going were foiled within the first 45 seconds of the second half of extra time at the New York New Jersey Stadium. We all knew this final would be a tense affair, and we all knew it had zero chance of living up to the Bronze Final; where England defeated France 6-4. In a just world, we could write 20 articles on the spectacle of that game, but unfortunately it was the warm-up act the day before the final, which in itself was a show, and a football match, being opened by the likes of Robbie Williams and Tom Cruise; cinema’s greatest action star delivered an impassionate speech about the journey we all went on during the tournament, which is in no way a subtle attempt to promote his upcoming film. I digress. Eventually the football got underway, five minutes past a scheduled 3pm kickoff in New Jersey, and to say that the greatest game in sport was a tepid, painful and at times, drab affair would be a fair conclusion to make about Spain V Argentina. The 2022 champions sat behind the ball, Spain’s possession and patience shining as chance after chance was either saved by Aston Villa’s Emiliano Martinez or squandered by the likes of Lamine Yamal, Mikel Merino or Mikel Oyarzabal.
Half-time came and went, with an added half-time show part of the festivities, before more of the same in the second half. All of the drama kicked off in the 93rd minute, where 11 minutes after being booked for dissent, Chelsea’s Enzo Fernandez was sent off for a crunching tackle on Spain defender Pau Cubarsi, who as it so happened won the Young Player of the Tournament. Fernandez received his marching orders after a lengthy protest, before Lamine Yamal could’ve booked his place in footballing history by firing a free-kick past Martinez, but Villa’s number one covered immense ground to pull off a sensational save, denying Yamal the greatest moment of his career. That being said, he’ll have plenty of chances to make history. He’s 19 in case you didn’t know, or forgot. Extra-time was more of the same, despite Spain having a goal ruled out for a foul on former Manchester City defender Nicolas Otamendi being fouled by Merino, but in the 106th minute, it was Ferran Torres who emulated Andres Iniesta, scoring the winner for Spain to clinch not just the World Cup, but the coveted and rarely achieved Euros-World Cup double, which was last achieved by Spain in 2008, when they won the Euros, and in 2010, winning the iconic World Cup in South Africa.
Jubilant scenes followed despite some of the Argentinian camp losing their cool, before FIFA President Gianni Infantino and US President Donald Trump handed the trophy to Golden Ball winner, Rodri, who lifted it high into the Jersey sky to cap off a wonderful, calculated and calm Spanish campaign in North America. And then silence fell over the stadium; the fans slowly trickled away, as did the players, coaching staff and the media, as the 23rd FIFA World Cup came to an end after six enthralling weeks of non-stop action. There’s no doubt that the expansion of the tournament has worked, which is music to the ears of Mr Infantino, who’s considered interest in expanding the tournament again for the 100th anniversary in 2030; that World Cup is mostly going to be held in Morocco, Portugal, and in the backyard of the new World Champions, Spain, a feat that has never happened before.
FIFA will be very happy with how the tournament played out; the final raked in half a billion dollars, but from a sporting perspective, it wasn’t as bad as people feared with an extra knockout round, and it offered drama everywhere you looked. Who would’ve thought that Pico Lopes of Shamrock Rovers and co would shock the entire globe with their heroics with Cape Verde? Who would’ve seen Germany losing on penalties to Paraguay? Who would’ve imagined the likes of Curacao strutting their stuff on the world’s stage? The storylines were endless and the memories were infinite, but to wrap it all up, here’s the Northern Sound World Cup 2026 Awards, voted for by Dave Hooper, Kevin McDermott, Sean McCaffrey, and Luke Watson (After much debate and discussion)
Player of the Tournament: Rodri (Spain, Manchester City)
Young Player of the Tournament: Michael Olise (France, Bayern Munich)
Game of the Tournament: Argentina 3-2 Egypt
Story of the Tournament: Folarin Balogun’s re-instation by FIFA following his red card
Underrated Player: Mikel Merino (Spain, Arsenal)
Goal of the Tournament: Sidny Lopes Cabral’s equaliser against Argentina in the Round of 32.
So after 104 matches, Spain have earned their second star, deposing the Argentinians to win the greatest sporting event on Earth. I started with a quote from a legendary broadcaster, so I’ll finish with one from another legendary broadcaster, with a slight change at the end:
20 odd men kicked a ball around for 120 minutes, and in the end, do I really need to tell you, the Spanish won.
That’s all folks. Luke Watson - 2026 World cup Diary
