Sorry Leo - Argentina's anti-football didn't deserve World Cup glory: Winners and losers as Messi bows out in tears while Spain set their sights on a dynasty of dominance

At the end of a gruelling battle of footballing philosophies, Spain are world champions once again. It was control vs chaos in the 2026 World Cup final as Luis de la Fuente's pass masters came up against the holders and experts in the dark arts, Argentina. Ultimately, after 120 minutes of bruising action, La Roja (and football) would prevail 1-0, leaving Lionel Messi disconsolate.

It might not have been the most memorable final in terms of goalmouth action, or quality football of any note, but it would be little surprise if it is one of those matches that is remembered for its sheer physicality, however one-sided it might have been , perhaps even with its own title ('The Battle of New Jersey', anyone?!).

Enzo Fernandez's needless red card for a second bookable offence in stoppage time at the end of the 90 minutes proved to be decisive, as the combative holders were reduced to 10 men for the entirety of extra-time. They couldn't hold on.

Ultimately, in a game where Spain peppered Emi Martinez's goal but largely failed to carve out clear-cut opportunities , Ferran Torres' 106th-minute strike would prove to be the difference. The substitute fired an unerring effort into the roof of the net from Nico Williams' perfect knockdown, and De la Fuente's men survived some late scares so claim a second-ever World Cup crown.

For once, Messi was merely a bystander, unable to come up with one last superhuman salvo to miraculously save his country in what was surely his last dance.

GOAL breaks down the winners and losers from New Jersey...

• WINNER: Football It was a gruelling battle, but in the end this was undoubtedly a victory for football over sh*thousery and the dark arts. Argentina deployed the same physical, disruptive tactics that unsettled England in the semi-finals, but perhaps even cranked things up a notch. Lionel Scaloni's men looked hell-bent on kicking their opponents off the park, and for 106 minutes their, shall we say, agricultural approach was working once again against the European champions. However, on this occasion the Albiceleste would come up short, and many would argue that they were deservedly punished for their anti-football on the game's biggest stage. Several of their players took things a step too far, namely Fernandez and Leandro Paredes - with the former needlessly sent off and the latter committing countless fouls before appearing to throw punches at Spanish players after the full-time whistle . The World Cup-winning Argentine team of 2022 earned plenty of admirers for their fight and never-say-die attitude, but the nature of this performance and the ugly scenes that followed have tarnished this squad's legacy.
• LOSER: Lionel Messi This isn't how it was supposed to end for Messi, with a silver medal around his neck and tears streaming down his face. Having dominated the 2026 World Cup right up until the final with eight goals and four assists, it is a crying shame that the Argentine GOAT saved what was by far his worst performance for the biggest stage, although that is probably no coincidence. Messi's team-mates usually play only for him, attempting to dominate the ball in midfield to create passing lanes into his path, but their overaggressive approach in the final left their talisman on the periphery, as his side instead focused solely on breaking up Spain's attempts to attack by committing foul after foul. It was telling that this was the first time throughout the tournament that Messi was unable to make some form of attacking contribution. From a collective perspective, this is a sad way for Messi to bow out, with some of his compatriots debasing the achievements of Scaloni's special squad with their ugly antics. Messi, his country and the rest of the footballing world will just be glad that he got his hands on the trophy four years ago to secure his legacy.
• WINNER: Ferran Torres Before the final, it had been a tournament to forget for Barcelona striker Torres, who had struggled to make any sort of impact while playing second fiddle to Spain's top scorer Mikel Oyarzabal, failing to net a single goal. But when it mattered most, he belatedly delivered - and then some. Thrown on in place of Oyarzabal with half an hour of normal time to play in New Jersey, Torres would pop up with the decisive moment in the extra period to seal a second-ever World Cup crown for his country. He could be forgiven for a lack of confidence in front of goal, but he showed anything but as he lashed Williams' perfect knockdown into the roof of the net to win it.
• LOSER: Enzo Fernandez Dear oh dear oh dear. Enzo Fernandez - what on EARTH were you thinking?! The Chelsea man had been anonymous throughout normal time in East Rutherford, failing to create a single chance, have a single shot OR take a single touch in the Spanish box, but he still found a way to have a significant impact, as his red card paved the way for Spain's victory. Having already been booked for a very obvious show of dissent after being denied a foul near the halfway line late on, Fernandez inexplicably charged into a challenge on Pau Cubarsi in stoppage time in exactly the same spot and took all of the man and none of the ball. Despite his protracted and embarrassing protests, it was a second yellow card all day long. He cost his country dearly.
• WINNER: Luis de la Fuente It was a war of attrition, but De la Fuente ultimately got his tactics just right yet again on the biggest stage. All of his second-half substitutions had exactly the desired effect, with Spain seemingly the only team that was looking for a goal in the 90 minutes, and two of them combined for the all-important strike in extra time. Pedri seized control of the game after his introduction, creating more chances than anyone else (four) despite coming on shortly after the hour mark, Mikel Merino's physicality provided a new attacking dimension and he came within a whisker of heading in the winner, and Williams was a far more direct threat than Alex Baena on the left flank. It was, of course, the latter who teed up fellow substitute Torres with a perfect reverse, downward header. We could be witnessing the start of another Spanish dynasty under De la Fuente, who has proven himself to be a tournament expert both with La Roja's youth ranks and the senior side. Having claimed the European Championship and World Cup back to back, this relatively young squad could be capable of years of dominance with him at the helm.
• Young Player of the Tournament
• FIFA Power Rankings Explainer
• Attacking
• Creativity
• Defending

LOSER: Lisandro Martinez

When Lisandro Martinez dreamt of how his World Cup final might unfold the night before, this definitely wasn't what he would have had in mind. The Manchester United defender lasted just 44 minutes of the showpiece before being forced off injured. That will really sting for a player who was an unused substitute when Argentina triumphed over France in Qatar in 2022.

To make matters worse, the combative centre-back may well have hurt himself when committing a cynical foul on Oyarzabal which earned him a booking just three minutes prior to his withdrawal late in the first period. His club will be desperately hoping the problem - which looked like a thigh issue - is nothing serious for a player who has been plagued by injuries.

WINNER: Harry Kane

One intriguing subplot of the World Cup final was the battle for the 2026 Ballon d'Or, and both Messi and Lamine Yamal might have done England captain Harry Kane a massive favour in his pursuit of that individual accolade .

Kane was considered the favourite for the prize before the tournament, but his hopes took a significant blow when England were knocked out in the semi-finals by Argentina, as Messi progressed as one of the top scorers and Yamal also claimed his place in the showpiece despite failing to hit his usual lofty heights in North America.

However, Messi finally failed to show up in New Jersey as Argentina fell short, and Barcelona's latest prodigy Yamal struggled to make much of an impact himself in an uncharacteristically quiet showing despite getting his hands on the trophy. Consequently, the Ballon d'Or is still very much on for Kane this year after his ridiculous exploits with Bayern Munich last season.

LOSER: The pitch

Given all the millions and millions and millions of dollars that were, quite frankly, wasted on making this final as much of a big, brash spectacle as possible, it is a travesty that the playing surface at the New York New Jersey Stadium was seemingly neglected, with the actual football clearly one of the lowest priorities.

For a game of this magnitude, the pitch was an utter embarrassment, with large areas visibly patchy, dry and hard as a result of the baking weather. Usually an NFL stadium with an artificial pitch, the grass in East Rutherford had been problematic throughout the tournament, which raises serious questions of why it was chosen to host the final in the first place.

LOSER: FIFA's 'entertainment'

This was a final that encapsulated the commercialisation of the beautiful game, which has been laid bare at this tournament in particular. At a game where punters had paid thousands and thousands of dollars for a ticket, the players on the pitch were probably the lowest-profile celebrities in attendance.

Robbie Williams (wearing a sequined tracksuit), Nicole Scherzinger and Tom Cruise were among a disjointed mishmash of stars who opened the final, while a half-time show that no one asked for featured Brazilian greats Ronaldo and Ronaldinho driving Madonna through the tunnel and performances from the Muppets and Justin Bieber.

As Wayne Rooney so eloquently put it on the BBC 's coverage of the final, "it was crap".