A collage of Argentina’s Lionel Messi celebrating after his team qualified for the World Cup final, and Spain’s Lamine Yamal reacting after a goal was disallowed for offside during the semifinal against France. (Photo credits: Agustin Marcarian/Reuters and Paul Ellis/AFP)
So here we are. It's been six weeks of World Cup football, some of it has been brilliant and some of it painful to watch, and it's all come down to this: Spain vs. Argentina, on Sunday July 19, at MetLife Stadium, in New Jersey.
For a night like this, we'll be covering the match live starting at 10 p.m. Beirut time — writing everything as it happens, from the first whistle to the last.
Lionel Messi, who's 39, is still Argentina's star, and somehow remains the best player on the pitch. If Argentina wins, it'll mean back-to-back World Cup titles, something only two teams in history have ever managed: Italy, who won in 1934 and 1938, and Brazil, who won in 1958 and 1962. Nobody has done it since.
Unlike Argentina, Spain hasn't been flashy about its run, but the team has barely let another side near their goal all tournament. Two of the players behind that, Lamine Yamal and Pau Cubarsí, are both just 19. Young, but still a couple of years off Pelé, who was only 17 when he won the World Cup with Brazil in 1958. Poetically, almost folklorically, Yamal will spend the match trying to stop the very player whose posters he grew up with on his bedroom wall.
Whatever your World Cup ritual is, get it ready — beers, snacks, whoever you're watching with. Ninety minutes should decide it, but finals love to drag things out, so don't rule out extra time, penalties, and plenty of nail-biting. We'll be with you the whole way through the live .
So, which team are you supporting? Who do you think will be holding the 2026 World Cup trophy — Spain or Argentina?
Send us your predictions, questions, or comments — about the match, the players, or a bit of World Cup history — before and during the game, in the comments section (for subscribers) or by email at livechatolj@lorientlejour.com.
We'll be answering them in the live blog right here.
