Argentina 2022
Argentina won Qatar 2022 in what many consider the greatest final in football history and the definitive coronation of Lionel Messi. Lionel Scaloni's side reached the final after a passionate tournament that began with a shock defeat to Saudi Arabia. On 18 December at Lusail Stadium, before 88,966 spectators, Argentina dominated and led 2-0 through a Messi penalty and a stunning Ángel Di María goal from a sweeping counter-attack. The match seemed settled until Kylian Mbappé scored twice in 97 seconds, a thunderbolt brace that forced extra time. Messi scored again in extra time, but Mbappé completed his hat-trick from the penalty spot: 3-3. In the shootout, Gonzalo Montiel converted the decisive penalty. Messi, at 35, finally lifted the World Cup draped in an Arab bisht, completing a career that needed only this title to be unanimously considered the greatest in the history of the game.