Roughly 1.5 billion people watched Argentina beat France in the 2022 World Cup Final. Super Bowl 60 pulled about 125 million. Do the math on that ratio — it’s not close, and it’s not supposed to be. The men’s World Cup Final is the single most-watched sporting event on the planet, and Sunday’s championship match between Lionel Messi’s Argentina and Lamine Yamal’s Spain at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, could push the audience toward two billion.
That figure is an estimate, of course. Final viewership won’t be confirmed until after the match concludes. But the 2014 and 2018 finals each drew approximately one billion viewers, and the 2022 final cleared 1.5 billion. With Messi widely expected to play his final match for Argentina — chasing a second consecutive World Cup title — the ceiling is higher than any previous final.
For context, that would make the 2026 World Cup Final roughly ten times the audience of the most-watched Super Bowl in history. The film doesn’t lie about scale.
Spain reached the final by dismantling tournament favorites France 2-0 in the semifinal, with goals from Mikel Oyarzabal and Pedro Porro. Oyarzabal has five goals in the tournament. Argentina’s path was scrappier — a 2-1 comeback win over England in the semifinal, with Lautaro Martínez scoring the decisive goal in stoppage time. Throughout the knockout rounds, Argentina relied on late goals and comebacks, the kind of grit that wins trophies but ages coaches in dog years.
Luis de la Fuente named an unchanged Spain XI from the France match. Rodri and Fabián Ruiz anchor the midfield, with Dani Olmo operating behind Oyarzabal. Pedri, notably, starts on the bench. Yamal was carrying a left thigh concern but was cleared to start.
Lionel Scaloni made three changes from the England semifinal. Gonzalo Montiel, Rodrigo De Paul, and Nicolás González — the Juventus winger — all came into the starting lineup. Lautaro Martínez, despite his semifinal heroics, dropped to the bench in favor of Julián Álvarez. Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Exequiel Palacios was also among the substitutes.
Spain (4-2-3-1): Simón; Porro, Cubarsí, Laporte, Cucurella; Rodri, Fabián Ruiz; Yamal, Olmo, Baena; Oyarzabal.
Argentina (4-4-2): E. Martínez; Montiel, Romero, Lisandro Martínez, Tagliafico; De Paul, Mac Allister, Enzo Fernández, N. González; Álvarez, Messi.
The match kicked off at 3 p.m. ET, refereed by Slovenia’s Slavko Vincic. In the U.S., Fox carried the broadcast; BBC One and ITV1 handled coverage in the UK.
Before kickoff, MetLife Stadium — rebranded as New York/New Jersey Stadium for the tournament — hosted the first-ever World Cup closing ceremony. Post Malone performed, with Tom Cruise, Robbie Williams, Laura Pausini, Jennifer Hudson, and IShowSpeed among the celebrity names on hand. Christopher Macchio sang “America the Beautiful” as part of the ongoing U.S. 250th anniversary celebration. Ronaldo Nazário, Carles Puyol, and Fabio Capello appeared at a FIFA Legends photocall on the gold carpet.
A Spain victory would deliver the country’s second World Cup title, 16 years after the 2010 triumph in South Africa. An Argentina win would mean a fourth World Cup crown — pulling level with Italy and Germany, one behind Brazil’s five — and back-to-back championships for the first time in their history.
For Messi, it is widely expected to be the last time he pulls on the Argentina shirt. A billion and a half people watched him win his first. The number watching him walk off could be the largest audience any sporting event has ever assembled.
Sources:
- Yahoo Sports — How many people watch the World Cup Final?
- Yahoo Sports — Cup title on the line! Spain and Argentina set for the final
- Yahoo Sports — World Cup Final: Spain vs. Argentina official line-ups
- Yahoo Sports / NorthJersey.com — World Cup Final closing ceremony kicks off Spain vs. Argentina match
- Yahoo Sports — Spain vs Argentina, World Cup Final: Live Thread
- Yahoo Sports — World Cup Final: Leverkusen’s Palacios on the bench as Argentina face Spain