DAZN Panel: Picking the best player, goal and game from the 2026 World Cup

It's been a tournament full of big names, big stories and some compelling games, but it finished with the best team in the competition lifting the famous trophy. 

The Spanish also took him the three big individual prizes, with Kylian Mbappe nabbing his second Golden Boot. 

However, what have been the DAZN Panel's highlights of this year's finals? We asked our team to name their best player, goal and game from World Cup 2026. 

Matt Astbury 

Player of the tournament - Rodri 

You can look no further than Spain captain Rodri.

He may not be in the most glamorous of positions, but without him, Spain cannot function.

Rodri’s passing accuracy, ability to swiftly glide into the opposition half and disrupt opposition attacks make him the perfect player to build a team around. With a World Cup winners’ medal around his neck, he is well on the path to becoming one of this generation’s great players.

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Goal of the tournament - Patar Musa (Croatia vs. England, Group Stage) 

Croatia’s second goal in their 4-2 group stage defeat to England stands out for me.

A lot had to go right in order for Petar Musa’s to volley the ball into the back of the net, but the lofted ball from Mario Pasalic met be Ivan Perisic, whose header found Musa in the box, deserved a goal just for the ambition of improvising a move of that calibre.
 

Game of the tournament  - Argentina 3-2 Cape Verde 

Argentina’s extra-time win over Cape Verde for me in the round of 32.

This had everything that makes the World Cup great. A minnow stunning a footballing giant, goals galore, and a feel-good story.

No one expected Cape Verde to score once against the defending champions, let alone twice, and they were amazing goals also.

This 48-team World Cup has received plenty of criticism, and while it is still a format I am not the biggest fan of, without it, we would not have smaller nations like Cape Verde creating memories to last a lifetime on football’s biggest stage.

Andrew Steel 

Player of the tournament - Erling Haaland

Sure, Rodri pulled the strings for Spain's success, and Lionel Messi's moments of magic dragged Argentina to another final. But few players captured the hearts of America like Norway's front man.

A proven goal machine at club level, Haaland transferred his form to the biggest stage of all with a string of scintillating individual performances.

His turn - so artfully effortless and yet supremely calculated - against Brazil should prove to be a defining image

Goal of the tournament - Ferran Torres (Spain vs. Argentina, Final)

It might not have been the most magnificent strike of a long tournament - but few finishes were as roundly heard around the world as the goal that handed La Roja a second start on the shirt.

Having emerged as a second-half substitute, Torres kept himself busy around the box for much of the game - and it was his effort that proved the critical difference on the board in the end.

His finish, deftly teed up by Nico Williams and rifled with marksman-like precision past Emiliano Martínez, was more than just the winning goal, but a seismic shift in a game that sorely needed it.

Game of the tournament: France 4-6 England

Eliminated in the semi-finals despite their marginal favourites status, Les Bleus and the Three Lions both arrived as bridesmaids for their showdown in Miami on Saturday - and shed those tags in style.

Third-place may not be much to write home about, but compared to previous bronze-medal matches, this freewheeling feast saw both teams unleash their best attacking instincts in the service of entertainment.

England's best result at a World Cup since 1966 - courtesy of Bukayo Saka's hat-trick - should not paper over the fact Thomas Tuchel has a few too many cracks in his psyche. But this was still a wonderful moment.(C)Getty Images

Ash Rose 

Player of the tournament - Lionel Messi 

Rodri rightly got their plaudits and the trophy after a first-class showing, but as controlling and influential as he is, World Cups are made by the superstars and they don't come bigger than Messi. 

I doubted we'd see too much of him before the tournament, foolishly thinking it would be one finals too far for the greatest of all time, but as usual, he proved why he has that label. 

Eight goals, four assists, at aged 39, but it was the way he manoeuvred his way around the pitch to find the room and inflict punishment that is still second to none. 

His scanning of knowing where to be and how to get there is astonishing, and it almost saw him lead his country to back-to-back World Cups. The game will have a gaping hole when the great man departs. 

The Asahi Shimbun via Getty Images

Goal of the tournament - Harry Kane (England vs DR Congo, Round of 32) 

A goal out of almost nothing from the England skipper just when the Three Lions needed it, to prove why he's the greatest player to ever wear the Three Lions shirt. 

Having already got his side back into the game with a textbook header, Kane then picked up the ball just inside the box from Anthony Gordon. He took one touch to take it out of his feet, then hit a rasping shot into the roof of the net. 

To get that power and accuracy from such little room is the mark of a world-class finisher and one that should be walking off the with the Ballon d'Or later this year. 

Game of the tournament - Mexico 2-3 England 

Maybe it was the unique kick-off, being in a pub at 4 am in the morning, but add that to the roller-coaster of a ride the game was and it was a true standout moment. 

Bellingham's brace, Kane's nerves of steel and the rearguard defence from the Three Lions to keep Mexico at bay once they were down to ten men made the game a real enthralling affair. 

Which was summed up by Dan Burn's ludicrous clearance from a biycle kick that rebounded all the way into the opposition half. 

One the great England performances, where Kane even lost his own composure (and voice) in the celebratory aftermath. 

Jason Abbey

Player of the tournament - Lionel Messi

I thought Messi would be good, but nowhere near this good.

Finishing with eight goals and four assists at 39 is an incredible feat, and for me, it confirmed he’s the best player on this planet.

But his game goes far beyond that. The vision, the intelligence, the knack for producing in big moments- he’s got it all.

Goal of the tournament - Sidny Lopes Cabral (Cabo Verde vs. Argentina)

There are so many to choose from, but Cabral’s effort against the Argentines, where he curled a stunning effort into the top corner beyond an outstretched Emiliano Martínez, was a thing of sheer beauty.

That it came at the end of a passage of play where the Cape Verdeans knocked the ball around with pinpoint accuracy was the cherry on the cake. It helped them push Argentina hard in a game that underlined why they were one of the tournament's fairytales.

Game of the tournament - Mexico 2-3 England 

A delayed kick-off and the altitude and atmosphere at the Azteca were always going to make this a thriller, and it definitely didn’t disappoint.

Two goals from Jude in less than 2 minutes before we conceded, then came the dismissal and a penalty apiece, before we somehow held on with Pickford denying Jiménez on a night when he matched Peter Shilton’s appearance record.

It was a game that had everything. My heart was racing from start to finish and for a long time afterwards.

Rudi Schuller

Player of the tournament - Lionel Messi

Consider that this man is 39 years old and still putting up better numbers than players 15 years his junior.

For me, this tournament solidified Messi as the GOAT, although I can appreciate that he likely needed to win the entire tournament to convince most.

But eight goals, four assists, 25 key passes, 28 dribbles and six Man of the Match awards in a single tournament is just about as dominant as it comes — especially for a player who has clearly lost a step or two and has had to reinvent himself to remain on top.

Goal of the tournament - Amad Diallo (Cote d'Ivoire vs. Norway)

The African side needed a spark to get themselves back into their round of 32 match against Norway, who had taken a first-half lead and looked to be cruising towards the last-16.

They got just that in the 74th minute, as Amad drove down the right flank and weaved his way through several defenders before deposited the ball behind Norwegian goalkeeper Ørjan Nyland to finish off a stunning solo effort.

Unfortunately for Cote d'Ivoire, they couldn't stop Erling Haaland from scoring the winner 12 minutes later, but that doesn't take away from Amad's brilliance.

Game of the tournament - Portugal 2-1 Croatia

There were several matches to choose from but this one stands out most for me — and not just because I was fortunate enough to witness it in person.

A highly charged round of 32 clash featuring Cristiano Ronaldo on one side and Luka Modric on the other, Portugal and Croatia put on a show for an appreciative crowd in Toronto.

In truth, the Croatians carried the match right up until Ronaldo levelled the score with his successful 68th minute penalty. That was his first World Cup knockout round goal, and it served as a catalyst for the Portuguese as they turned the pressure up a few notches, leading to some truly enthralling back-and-forth play between the two sides.

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The game seemed destined for extra time, but Gonçalo Ramos scored in the fourth minute of stoppage time to put Portugal ahead. And then the world was introduced to the latest in-ball technology after Joško Gvardiol thought he had scored the equalizer with just seconds left to play, only for the goal to be disallowed for offside due to it grazing another Croatian player's hair.

As unfair as the ending may have been for Croatia, the controversy just added to a game that became an instant World Cup classic.

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