World Cup 2026: Spain and Argentina meet in final as none other than Donald Trump takes part, winners’ rings and first ever half-time | Football news

The 2026 World Cup finals will be unlike any other.

Spain and Argentina will meet in New York/New Jersey in what should be a high-stakes football showdown – but surrounded by glamour, fanfare and controversy not seen in the previous 22 editions of the showpiece…

How long will it last?

A long time. It may well be the longest World Cup final ever. But even if extra time and penalties are not required, the game will continue for more than two hours.

If there is VAR intervention, there will be more stoppage time. There is currently a guaranteed three minutes to be added at the end of each half due to the mandatory water break introduced in the tournament.

But the first game of the break will be the one that increases the running time.

The game is scheduled to start at 8pm UK time. It may be close to midnight when Gianni Infantino and President Trump present the World Cup winning captain.

What is the halftime show about?

The final game of the World Cup in the USA will be heard in America with the half-time show of the Super Bowl.

How long it will last is uncertain – the original show is scheduled to be 11 minutes long but the staging and disassembly will add several minutes.

It will probably be 15 minutes before the regular football break. The players’ unions have expressed concern about how this could increase the chances of injury due to players not playing.

But FIFA wants to prioritize entertainment stars – as they have established themselves in the competition. Madonna, Shakira and Justin Bieber will be performing.

According to FIFA, it is organized in support of the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund.

What are some Americanisms?

What about World Cup winning rings? After winning the Super Bowl, American football players get a ring – and on Sunday the winning football players will also be given one. Which is strange.

Even a stranger doesn’t know the fact that 2,026 rings will be made – 30 for the winners and 1,996 available for sale.

And is Trump likely to be involved?

That’s right! He has been a key player throughout the tournament – even though it will be his first game.

Trump has made headlines for his various views at this World Cup, from suggesting that Iran’s players should not be involved in making sure he asked FIFA boss Gianni Infantino to allow USA’s Folarin Balogun to play despite the suspension, to facing criticism from Thomas Tuchel for his use of Harry Kane.

And you will be in the middle of it all when the World Cup title is awarded to the winning team. As he did in the Club World Cup (and vice versa), he will hand over the famous trophy to the winning captain and share in the trophy.

Okay, what about the players?

Finally! There is a big circus in this game but there will be high level players on the field.

European champions Spain can call on outstanding midfielders Rodri and Fabian Ruiz, talented youngster Lamine Yamal, and goalkeeper Unai Simon to finish the tournament with plenty of clean sheets.

Reigning world champions Argentina have Enzo Fernandez, Julian Alvarez and a certain Lionel Messi.

Will this be Messi’s last game in Argentina?

Let’s see… but so far he hasn’t said it will.

Messi, of course, retired from international football in 2016, it was the weight that was expected of him. It didn’t last long and since then he has won the World Cup and two Copa Americas.

Now 39, he is preparing for his third World Cup final and is in a good position to claim the golden boot as the top scorer and the golden ball as the best player… surprising, if most think that winning the 2022 World Cup will be his turning point.

So who will win?

A difficult question!

In this tournament, Argentina rose to number 1 in the FIFA world rankings, while Spain is in second place. It’s the European champions against the world champions. Argentina are looking to bounce back, and if Spain match their strategy in 2010 to add the World Cup to their European crown, they will surely be honored in the history books.

Predictions based on Opta statistics make Spain the favorite, giving it a 59.6 percent chance of success. But it sounds like a 50-50 game – and it should be a cracker!

Will there be conflicts?

Maybe! Whether it’s on or off the pitch, there’s no doubt there will be plenty of talking points to consider on Monday morning. Spain coach Luis de la Fuente has already warned the referees in the game to “not allow violations of the rules” after questions about Argentina’s performance against England.

It looks like Argentina have been given the green light by the White House FIFA staff to re-unfurl their Falklands banner.

The head of this team Andrew Giuliani said: “We believe in our First Amendment rights here in the United States of America.”

FIFA rules ban all political messages in matches and their “independent” disciplinary committee is “considering the relevant circumstances before deciding on possible action” after Argentina displayed a banner after beating England.

Can I still get a ticket?

If you have money, you can! As of Saturday, a handful of $30,000 tickets were still available for the finals.

Tickets were also available at the FIFA resale site. The most expensive on the list was $2 million.

If you can’t get to that, remember you can follow the game on the Sky Sports website and app with our dedicated live blog, bringing you updates, goal alerts and analysis.