The clock had ticked 120+1 minutes.
The report indicates that the Kansas City Stadium held its breath as Switzerland and Argentina slugged it out.
It further notes that lautaro Martínez pounced on a rebound deep into stoppage time of extra time, hammering the ball into the net to seal Argentina’s 3-1 victory over Switzerland.
The scoreline suggested comfort. The journey had been anything but.
With one swing of Martínez’s right boot, the final piece of the World Cup puzzle fell into place.
Four former world champions. Four football superpowers. Four teams that began the tournament occupying the top four places in FIFA’s world rankings.
When Coca-Cola and FIFA completed the permutations and concluded these were the top four nations globally, never did they saw this script playout like a Hollywood cast.
For the first time since the rankings were introduced in 1992, the four highest-ranked nations have all reached the World Cup semi-finals.
The tournament has finally arrived at its defining moment.
After a month of football spread across the United States, Canada and Mexico–the first 48-team World Cup in history–the dream of lifting the greatest trophy in sport belongs to only four nations. Two matches stand between them and immortality.
The road now leads to Arlington, where France meet Spain, before attention shifts to Atlanta for one of football’s fiercest rivalries as England face defending champions Argentina.
The last four here extends far beyond rankings.
Not since Italia ’90 has every World Cup semi-finalist previously lifted the trophy.
Then, Argentina and England were among the final four without meeting each other. Thirty-six years later, they return to the same stage, carrying the weight of history once again.
The possibility of another France-Argentina final also looms large, recreating the unforgettable showdown that crowned Lionel Messi in Qatar four years ago.
