The 2026 World Cup reaches its final whistle Sunday afternoon at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, where Lionel Messi captains Argentina against a Spanish side that has spent the last five weeks making defenses look like a Sunday-morning rec league.
Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. ET on Fox.
Argentina arrives chasing consecutive World Cup titles — a feat last accomplished when Brazil did it in 1958 and 1962. Messi, who lifted the trophy in Qatar four years ago, assisted on both goals in Argentina’s semifinal comeback win over England and remains in contention for the Golden Boot. According to Yahoo Sports, he would need a three-goal performance or two goals and an assist to overtake Kylian Mbappé, who scored twice in France’s third-place match.
Spain, though, presents a different kind of problem. Luis de la Fuente’s squad has conceded exactly one goal the entire tournament. One. That’s the kind of defensive number that makes an old coach nod his head — you win championships by keeping the other team off the board, and Spain has done it about as well as it can be done. They beat France 2-0 in a semifinal that wasn’t as close as the scoreline, and de la Fuente has named an unchanged starting eleven for the final.
Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni made three changes from the England match. Right back Gonzalo Montiel, midfielder Rodrigo De Paul, and Nico Gonzalez come in for Nahuel Molina, Giuliano Simeone, and Leandro Paredes. Julián Álvarez partners Messi up top, with Cristian Romero and Lisandro Martínez anchoring the center of defense.
For Spain, Rodri captains the side from his defensive midfield perch, with Lamine Yamal — the tournament’s breakout star — joining Mikel Oyarzabal and Dani Olmo in attack. Pedro Porro was dealing with muscle tightness during the week but is fit to start.
And then there is the subplot that puts everything about Messi in perspective. He stands 5-foot-7 — 1.7 meters — making him one of the shortest players on the pitch in virtually every match he plays. At age 11, he was diagnosed with growth hormone deficiency when he stood just 4-foot-4. The treatment was painful and expensive, and without it, the career that has produced eight Ballon d’Or awards and a World Cup title might never have happened.
He is still two inches taller than Diego Maradona, the Argentine legend he is most often measured against.
Messi is not even the shortest player on Argentina’s roster. Valentín Barco, Thiago Almada, and Álvarez all stand at 5-7 alongside him. The tallest Argentine is goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez at 6-5. Across the entire 2026 World Cup, the range ran from Panama’s 5-3 winger César Yanis to Austria’s 6-9 goalkeeper Florian Wiegele.
Telemundo reported that Argentina’s squad arrived in the New York area ahead of the final, with Messi also pursuing the all-time World Cup scoring record. Mbappé overtook the career mark during the third-place match, adding another layer to what could be Messi’s final World Cup appearance.
Spain has the defense. Argentina has the man who has spent two decades making height irrelevant. The film doesn’t lie — but Sunday, somebody’s story ends.
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