Argentina Vs France: The climax is around the corner. Argentina and France are set for the final face-off this Sunday in the much-awaited FIFA 2022 Qatar World Cup finals. The final match is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. IST at the Lusail stadium.
In the first semis Argentina, led by the legendary player Lionel Messi defeated Croatia to advance to the summit clash 3-0. On the other hand, France, led by the outstanding Hugo Lloris, defeated Morocco 2-0 to make their way to the showdown.
Argentina Vs France: Valuable insights
- As per the official rankings by FIFA, this match is No. 3 vs. No. 4.
- So far, Argentina and France have met each other three times at the World Cup’s final stage.
- 18th December will be Argentina’s sixth World Cup appearance.
- France has won the title twice so far.
- Argentina has also twice won the title.
- The winner will get a whopping $42 million in prizes, while the runner-up will earn $30 million.
- If France wins, it’ll become Mbappe’s second World Cup title.
- Lionel Messi might become the fourth-oldest player to win a FIFA World Cup.
According to the official FIFA rankings, Sunday’s match is No. 3 vs No. 4.
This will be Argentina and France’s fourth meeting at the World Cup. Their previous face-offs were in the years 1930, 1978, and 2018.
First-ever Argentina vs. France match happened at the 1930 World Cup group stage in Uruguay and was won by Argentina 1-0. The two sides played off again at the 1978 World Cup in Argentina. Unfortunately, France was eliminated from the group stages after losing to Argentina 2-1.
The first time the two teams met in the knockout stages was in Russia’s FIFA World Cup 2018. It was a golden match, with the French team taking the fight to Argentina and clinching a seven-goal thriller. That year France eventually won the World Cup.
There are many things at stake for this World Cup final
On one side, Messi is eyeing the trophy and winning the first-ever World Cup trophy of his star-studded career; on; the other side, Mbappe is aiming to win the second World Cup title of his career after 2018.
The FIFA 2022 World Cup will be Argentina’s sixth World Cup appearance. The team won the title twice in the years 1978 and 1986. This will be the last chance for Argentina’s captain Lionel Messi to win the trophy for his country as Messi has announced that he will retire from international football after the title clash. If Argentina wins, 35-year-old Messi would become the fourth-oldest player to win a FIFA World Cup, behind Miroslav Klose, Nilton Santos, and 40-year-old Italian record-holder Dino Zoff.
For France, this will be their fifth FIFA final. They made it to the final of the World Cup in 1998, 2006, and 2018. The team won the title in 1998 and 2018.
This will be a crucial match for Kylian Mbappe’s career. If he continues at his current pace for the French national team, by age 30 he will have amassed 153 international caps and 79 goals along with the second World Cup trophy of his career.
He will soon catch up with Cristiano Ronaldo’s record of 118 international goals in his 229th cap at age 36.
The third pay-off will be on Saturday, December 17, and will be played between Croatia and Morocco. Again, this is going to be a historic match because if Morocco wins, it will become the first African nation to get third place in the history of the grand tournament.
FIFA World Cup Prize Money
The FIFA 2022 Qatar World Cup winner will get a whopping $42 million in prizes, while the runner-up will earn $30 million. The second runner-up will receive a reward of $27 million, and the third runner-up will be rewarded with $25 million.
For reaching the quarter-final, Brazil, Netherlands, Portugal, and England will earn $17 million each.
For reaching the round of 16, $13 million each will be given to the USA, Senegal, Australia, Poland, Spain, Japan, Switzerland, and South Korea.
Qatar, Ecuador, Wales, Iran, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Denmark, Tunisia, Canada, Belgium, Germany, Costa Rica, Serbia, Cameroon, Ghana, and Uruguay will be rewarded with $9 million each for participation in the group stages.
