Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you should probably know by now that Argentina won the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
Although this happened less than 24 hours ago, the world has been shaken up by the result, with many Messi fans rejoicing.
So, what does this mean for Argentina?
The Third Star
If you’ve noticed, the Argentinian jersey has two stars on top of the logo. This means that they have won the World Cup twice in history.
Now that they’ve emerged victorious, Adidas will have to reprint its Argentina jerseys because the World Cup winners have gotten the third star.
They last won the world cup in 1986, even before Messi was born. And now, thanks to the GOAT (Greatest Of All Time), they’ve won again.
The Prize Money
Being the most-watched tournament in the entire world, arguably more than the Olympics, the World Cup pays a lot.
With Argentina’s win, they secure a bag of US$42 million (~S$57 million). As for the runner-up, France, they will be getting US$30 million (~S$41 million).
One can only wonder how much the prize money is in total.
Well, look no further. In total, FIFA has announced that the prize pool is US$440 million (~S$596 million). To put things into perspective, that’s nearly half a billion US dollars.
Every team in the round of 16 will receive US$13 million (~S$18 million), while those that make it to the quarterfinals will get US$17 million (~S$23 million). Morocco, the fourth-place team, will be awarded US$25 million (~S$34 million), and Croatia, the second runner-up, will receive US$2 million (S$2.7 million) extra.
For participation in the group stage, countries will get US$9 million (~S$12 million).
Messi’s Legacy
You need not be a football fan to have heard of the name Lionel Messi before.
After all, he’s what many refer to as the GOAT (Greatest Of All Time).
Well, as the GOAT ages and his goatee grows, he’s expecting to retire soon.
According to the GOAT himself, the Qatar 2022 World Cup finals will be his last World Cup appearance.
“This will be my last World Cup – for sure. The decision has been made. I am counting down the days to the World Cup. There is a bit of anxiety and nerves at the same time,” he said.
“It’s my last World Cup. It’s impressive to end up playing a final. There’s a long way to go for the next one, there are many years, and surely, because of age, I will not reach it. I’m going to play my second World Cup final. Hopefully, this time it ends in another way.”
In professional football, most players retire at 35, which is Messi’s current age. As such, getting him to return in the 2026 World Cup at 39 years old would be a tall order.
In other words, this was his last shot.
After sealing the victory, Messi is crowned the true Greatest. For long, it has been a debate about who was better: Messi or Ronaldo. But now, the result is determined.
Messi finally accomplished his lifelong dream. Messi finally surpassed his idol, Diego Maradona. Messi finally became the best in the world.
