00:00And we now go with our special segment on the occasion of the World Cup.
00:03Beyond the game, the ball stays pure. Go ahead Luis, pleasure to share that with you.
00:08Hi Sophie, a pleasure to be back with you here and with our audience of course.
00:12We are just minutes away from the final kickstarting between Spain and England.
00:18All is set, the players are warmed up, so all is ready for the great finale to begin in this
00:23edition of the World Cup in just a few minutes.
00:25But we'll have more after the break.
00:49Welcome to Beyond the Game. The Bulls is pure.
00:51We're just over 10 minutes away from the kickstart of the great grand finale in this edition of the World
00:58Cup between Spain and Argentina.
00:59In New York, New Jersey Stadium.
01:02Our eyes are on the pitch to see what happens between these two great football powerhouses.
01:08The champion of the European tournament, Spain, and the champion of Copa America, the American tournament in Argentina.
01:15A great finale that awaits us in just a couple of minutes, in just over 10 minutes.
01:19And we'll be here to experience it, and hopefully you as well.
01:22But for more information about this important match, let's go live to Mexico City with our collaborator, Carlos Montero, for
01:29everything that has to do with this grand finale coming up in just a few minutes.
01:33Welcome, Carlos.
01:35Hi, Luis.
01:36Amazing.
01:3739 days last this World Cup, and today is the last event, the last match.
01:45There is a musical event.
01:46We are here in one of the many fanfests that are around Mexico City to follow this important match between
01:54Argentina and Spain.
01:58Donald Trump is in the house, in the stadium, is also the prime minister of Canada, and the president of
02:04this country, the president of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum.
02:10You know, American people, if there's something they know what to do, it's show business.
02:15So we have a nice national anthem, American national anthem.
02:20Now there is some musical events before the match that's going to start in around 10 minutes.
02:26And then, of course, we want to know how they are going to play Argentina and Spain, but also we
02:31are going to have a unique halftime.
02:34Usually 15 minutes is the break between the first and the second half.
02:39In this case, they said it's going to be 17 minutes.
02:42I doubt it because we are going to have Shakira, we are going to have Madonna, we are going to
02:48have Justin Bieber.
02:50So what is going to be tough, how they are going to put to the mail, the famous Venezuelan director
02:55who is going to direct the symphonic from Simón Bolívar in Caracas and symphonic on New York.
03:02But about football, about Spain, about Argentina, it's going to be close.
03:07Argentina has some in the line-up, some changes.
03:11Rodrigo De Paul is going to be now a starter instead of the last time that the one who was
03:21playing.
03:22But now he's going to start from the beginning.
03:24That's something important because Messi needs him to be behind him.
03:28That's going to be so important, but there are so many things going on.
03:32Luis, we are ready.
03:33It's amazing.
03:33This is over, but we have a fantastic match in front of us.
03:38I'm going back to you.
03:40Thank you, Carlos, for all this information on how things are building up towards this one finale, which is shaping
03:46up to be an outstanding football match.
03:49But as we continue, let's see how Argentina's journey that was built on resilience and overcoming one tough test after
03:56another to keep its World Cup dream alive happened.
03:59Let's see this following work.
04:02The defending champions Argentina navigated Group J with experience and attacking quality, finishing atop the standings after victories over Jordan
04:10and Austria before sealing first place against Algeria.
04:13Lionel Messi once again set the tone, while Lionel Scaloni's squad showed the composure and efficiency expected from the reigning
04:20world champions as they advanced to the knockout stage on Beden.
04:25Argentina's route to the last four has been anything but straightforward.
04:28A thrilling 3-2-1 victory over Cape Verde in the round of 32 was followed by another dramatic 3
04:34-2 win against Egypt in the round of 16.
04:37The quarterfinal brought perhaps their toughest challenge yet, but the LB Celeste defeated Switzerland 3-1 to secure a return
04:44to the semifinals.
04:45Tested repeatedly under pressure, Argentina has relied on championship experience and the enduring brilliance of Messi to keep its title
04:52defense alive.
04:54Following a tense and scoreless first half, Anthony Gordon fired England ahead in the 55th minute with a powerful finish,
05:01but the defending champions responded with relentless pressure.
05:05Enzo Fernandez equalized in the 85th minute with a stunning long-range strike, while Lautaro Martinez sealed the win with
05:11the stoppage time header.
05:13Argentina dominated the match statistically and on the pitch in the second half, outshooting England 15-5.
05:22As Carlos was reported earlier, the 2026 FIFA World Cup comes to its thrilling conclusion as Spain and Argentina face
05:27off at New York-New Jersey Stadium to crown the new world champions.
05:31Both teams have delivered outstanding performances throughout the tournament.
05:35Spain has stood out for its disciplined defense and tactical control, putting together an impressive campaign with six wins, one
05:41draw and just a single goal conceded in the entire competition.
05:44Argentina, meanwhile, heads into the final with a perfect record of seven wins and no defeats, although Lionel Scaloni's side
05:51was tested throughout the knockout stage.
05:54Dalby Celeste is the tournament's highest scoring team with 17 goals, powered by the attacking trio Lionel Messi, Julian Alvarez
06:00and Lautaro Martinez.
06:01If Argentina leaves the trophy, it will claim a fourth World Cup title and successfully defend the crown won in
06:07Qatar in 2022,
06:08joining the exclusive club of nations to win back-to-back World Cups alongside Italy and Brazil.
06:13In addition, Argentina would move into a tie with Germany and Italy for the second most World Cup titles in
06:19history,
06:20joining only Brazil's record five championships.
06:23Spain, on the other hand, is aiming to capture its second FIFA World Cup title after its triumph in South
06:28Africa in 2010.
06:29A victory will see La Roja join France and Uruguay as the two-time world champions.
06:44The excitement is at all-time high in New York ahead of the FIFA World Cup final.
06:48Thousands of Argentina supporters transformed the iconic Times Square into a sea of sky blue and white.
06:55Fans gathered throughout the day despite the bad weather, waving flags, singing traditional chants and celebrating their team's remarkable run
07:01to the championship match against Spain.
07:04The atmosphere has become one of the biggest displays of fan passion outside the tournament host cities,
07:08with supporters expressing confidence that Lionel Messi and Argentina can lift another World Cup trophy.
07:14As anticipation reaches fewer pitch, all eyes now turn to Sunday's final, where Argentina and Spain will battle for football's
07:21biggest prize.
07:31This is all for this edition of Beyond the Game. The ball is pure in just about five minutes.
07:35The grand finale will kick start between Spain and Argentina.
07:38The reason why we have been following the World Cup, the most important football match in the world, will begin
07:43very shortly.
07:44So stay tuned for all the information coming from that astonishing match that we expect to be.
07:49We go back to you, Sophie.
07:51Well, thank you, Luisa, for keeping us posted on all the updates of the World of Football just minutes away
07:55from the final of this World Cup edition.
07:58With a special segment, we have come to the end of this news brief.
08:01You can find this and many other stories on our website at www.telesureenglish.net and join us on social
08:05media.
08:06We're on Facebook, X, Instagram, Telegram and TikTok.
08:09For TELESURE ENGLISH, I'm Sophie Fernández. Thank you for watching.
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