“Football won” – Toni Kroos makes emphatic claim as Spain defeat Argentina in final to win 2026 FIFA World Cup

Former Germany midfielder Toni Kroos reacted to Spain winning the 2026 FIFA World Cup by beating 10-man Argentina 1-0 in extra time in the New Jersey final on Sunday (July 19).

Following a goalless 90 minutes and the first period of extra time, substitutes Ferran Torres and Nico Williams combined to produce the wnner to make La Roja the world champions for the second time.

Albiceleste custodian Emiliano Martinez single-handedly kept his team in the game, makng an impressive 11 saves, including a curling free-kick from Lamine Yamal in the dying moments of regulation time.

However, the Aston Villa custodian was powerless to keep out Torres’ close-range effort – set up by Williams – as his citadel was finally breached after recording 11 saves. Following La Roja’s win, 2014 FIFA World Cup winner Kroos tweeted:

“Football won.”

The tweet has been viewed 5.5 million times at the time of writing.

Lionel Scaloni’s side’s job became tougher after midfielder Enzo Fernandez was sent off for a second bookable offence deep in regulation time, with the Albiceleste having managed no shots on the La Roja goal.

Nevertheless, they hung on gamely, with Williams seeing an effort ruled out for a foul in the build-up and substitute Mikel Merino heading wide from a promising position before Torres ended their stubborn resistance.

It’s pertinent to note that Kroos – now retired – played the full 120 minutes at Rio de Janeiro’s Maracana Stadium as Germany beat the Albiceleste 1-0 in extra time, thanks to Mario Gotze’s winner, to become world champions for the fourth time.

Dominant Spain end Lionel Messi and Argentina’s record run in 2026 FIFA World Cup final

Lionel Messi and Argentina were on record runs at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, going into the final clash with reigning European champions Spain on Sunday in New Jersey.

Messi, 39, had scored or assisted in 11 straight games, while the Albiceleste were riding a 13-game winning streak in the World Cup since losing 2-1 to Saudi Arabia at Qatar 2022.

However, a brilliant La Roja side ended both those impressive streaks, setting a new mark of 38 unbeaten games in men’s international football (excluding shootouts), winning 29.

Luis de la Fuente’s side are also the first team to complete the European Championship-FIFA World Cup double twice, having also accomplished it in 2010 in South Africa.