By Matis Molina Ricard ’24
After 36 long years, Argentina has finally won another World Cup. This is their third ever World Cup win, and it was definitely well-deserved. Fans were ecstatic roaming the streets of Buenos Aires, Argentina’s capital.
The last time Argentina won a World Cup was in 1986, so Argentinian fans have been waiting a long time for their country to bring home the trophy. Due to a very rocky start at the beginning of the World Cup, Argentina was not looking very hopeful for winning the tournament.
After winning the World Cup, around four million people were on the streets of Argentina celebrating their legendary win over France in penalties. France, who were the defending champions, were seeking to get back-to-back trophies, and by the way things were going, many people saw this to be a possibility. Kylian Mbappe, who had the most goals in the 2022 World Cup with 8 goals, was also a big threat to Argentina. Argentina started the World Cup with a loss against Saudi Arabia, who have only been to four World Cups and have never made it past the group stages. With all of these factors going against them, Argentina’s chances at winning didn’t seem very bright. But with Argentina’s legendary player Lionel Messi, there was always a spark of hope. They defeated some very strong teams including Croatia, Netherlands, and, finally, France.
“It was a game where we suffered,” said Argentina’s goalkeeper Emilio Martinez, who saved two penalty shots in the quarter finals and one in the final. The whole tournament was filled with emotion, surprise, and controversy but will definitely be one to remember.
