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Attendees cheer before the start of the World Cup championship final soccer match between Spain and Argentina in East Rutherford, N.J., Sunday, July 19, 2026.<\/p>\n
Jacquelyn Martin\/AP Photo\/Jacquelyn Martin<\/p>\n
Diana Fox Carney, from left, Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney, Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum, first lady Melania Trump, President Donald Trump, FIFA President Gianni Infantino, Leena Al Ashqar, King Felipe VI of Spain and Queen Letizia of Spain attend the World Cup championship final soccer match between Spain and Argentina in East Rutherford, N.J., Sunday, July 19, 2026.<\/p>\n
Jacquelyn Martin\/AP Photo\/Jacquelyn Martin<\/p>\n
Spain fans watch the World Cup final soccer match between Spain and Argentina in East Rutherford, N.J., near New York, Sunday, July 19, 2026.<\/p>\n
Seth Wenig\/AP Photo\/Seth Wenig<\/p>\n
Fireworks explode before the start of the World Cup championship final soccer match between Spain and Argentina in East Rutherford, N.J., Sunday, July 19, 2026.<\/p>\n
Jacquelyn Martin\/AP Photo\/Jacquelyn Martin<\/p>\n
National flag of Spain and Argentina are displayed as smoke the color of the countries are set off before the World Cup final soccer match between Spain and Argentina in East Rutherford, N.J., near New York, Sunday, July 19, 2026.<\/p>\n
Matt Slocum\/AP Photo\/Matt Slocum<\/p>\n
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) \u2014 Tom Cruise gamely tried to deliver a speech at the World Cup about how soccer was some sort of global unifier and great players had crossed oceans and boarders, and, well, what was the rest?<\/p>\n
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It was about mission impossible to hear the actor over the cacophony of bells and whistles and drums that served as the house band for all the joyous singing and clapping among the Argentine and Spanish fans who traveled thousands of miles \u2014 and spent thousands and thousands more in tickets, beers and, yes, wigs \u2014 to watch the World Cup final.<\/p>\n
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No exorbitant ticket price was too high to possibly say goodbye to Lionel Messi, playing in likely his last World Cup game.<\/p>\n
\u201cMoney comes back,\u201d Argentina fan Manuel Lopez Maccotta said. \u201cThis is once in a lifetime. You\u2019re seeing the best player in the world in his last World Cup. Money is worthless compared to this.\u201d<\/p>\n
Maccotta and one of his friends traveled from Buenos Aires to New Jersey to watch the final.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u201cAlmost 10K in American money,\u201d Maccotta said.<\/p>\n The $18 beer he was in line to buy suddenly seemed like chump change compared to the hot game ticket.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n His friend Santiago Burcaco got off easy at $5,000 for his ticket.<\/p>\n \u201cI bought the ticket before the World Cup final,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n In the 200 section of the stadium Sunday, Guadalupe Villar said she and her husband were at the finals almost by chance.<\/p>\n The Bueno Aires couple, who brought along their nearly 2-year-old daughter, won a contest for tickets to Argentina\u2019s semifinal match against England in Atlanta. After their home country won, they decided they weren\u2019t ready to go home and splurged for finals tickets that cost $7,000 each (their daughter was free).<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u201cWe both work and we have some savings and we were like, \u2018OK, maybe this vacation will go a little longer.\u2019 We\u2019re here now, you know?\u201d Villar said.<\/p>\n The only hiccup? Their flight from Atlanta to New York was canceled by bad weather.<\/p>\n Villar, who is an architect, said the family piled into a car with fellow countrymen they met on their travels and drove the 15 hours north, arriving at 5 a.m. on gameday.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re tired, and hot,\u201d she said as she took a break in a shaded area between the seating bowl and the concession area with her sleepy daughter.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n World Cup fans wanted to party<\/p>\n World Cup fans were given a \u201cJoin The Celebration\u201d sign that encouraged fans on how to best participate in the game.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen the music kicks in, clap along using your clapper!\u201d<\/p>\n It was about as useful as signing up Messi for soccer instructions<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Just as they have throughout the tournament, fans from both countries were jacked up from the moment they navigated long times to enter the stadium and sang and chanted in their native languages; certainly, giving halftime performers such as Madonna and Shakira a lofty bar to reach. There were no indication security lines for fans were slowed by President Donald Trump’s presence.<\/p>\n Spain fans dotted rows in their vibrant red-and-yellow afro wigs that featured their nation\u2019s flag. They removed them only to dump water on their heads and down their necks, trying to keep cool on a sunny day.<\/p>\n Ticket prices for the final soared like a Messi free kick before finally come down just a smidge \u2014 by well-heeled fans standards. \u201cModern Family\u201d actress Sof\u00eda Vergara stopped traffic in one concourse about 45 minutes before kickoff.<\/p>\n Tickets to the World Cup final, which were selling for tens of thousands of dollars, dropped to as low as $2,334.50 in the hours before the game on FIFA\u2019s resale site. FIFA still had list price tickets on sale the morning of the game for $10,990.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n World Cup fans got creative to attend matches<\/p>\n Yes, perhaps, some fans scrimped and saved to buy tickets.<\/p>\n Messi and the once-in-a-lifetime game instilled a unique kind of obsession to the passionate, loyal Argentina fan base.<\/p>\n They included three friends who cycled more than 10,000 miles<\/a> from their home in Argentina to Kansas City, Missouri, to watch their national team compete in the tournament; a nanny who lived out<\/a> of a Honda Civic to scrounge, save and travel to games; and another fan who said she got a tattoo<\/a> of an Argentine celebrity in exchange for a game ticket.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n<\/a>
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