Soccer
Who out of Messi and Yamal is ready to create a new World Cup winning picture?
FIFA+: World Cup archive & programmes FREE on DAZN
The 2026 World Cup comes to a conclusion tonight, and all eyes will be on New York as Spain take on Argentina for the first time in the competition’s showpiece.
It pits the European champions against the South American champions, and current holders, in a game between two sides with a fascinating clash in styles.
Yet, the narrative at the front and centre of this finale is the story around each side’s biggest star, Lionel Messi and Lamine Yamal.
A first-time meeting between the game’s greatest ever player and his heir apparent, where it will see either Messi sign off by leading his country to back-to-back World Cups or Yamal lift the trophy at just 19 years old.
Joan Monfort
The serendipity of soccer
The World Cup final might be the first time the two superstars have met on the pitch, but their first-ever encounter couldn’t be more serendipitous.
In what has become some of the most famous and frankly unbelievable images ever unearthed, Messi and Yamal first crossed paths when the Spanish teenager was just months old.
When the photos of a 20-year-old Messi bathing a young baby in 2007 were first released, they were already seen as pictures with a unique flavour. However, for it to be revealed that the baby was actually a freshly born Yamal is actually mind blowing.
The story behind the images centres around Yamal’s parents winning a raffle run by Catalan newspaper Sport in conjunction with UNICEF, which saw them be part of a photoshoot with a Barcelona player, and the stars aligned to have newborn Lamine snapped with Lionel Messi just making waves in the Barca team.
Now, two decades later, they astonishingly meet again on the grandest stage of them all – but who will be photographed with the famous trophy come the end of the game?
Getty Images
Whose World Cup?
There’s no question that the 2026 World Cup has belonged to Lionel Messi…again.
Somehow, even at the age of 39, the Argentine icon has orchestrated his team’s run to the final and put himself back at the front of the line for yet another Ballon d’Or.
Eight goals, four assists and masterful match-winning spells against Egypt and England lay down why he is the greatest footballer of all time.
Yamal, meanwhile, is yet to really fully fire in North America. He missed the opening games through the hamstring injury that he suffered at the back end of last season, and having slowly been brought back into the team, his influence is starting to grow, but we’re still to see a moment from the teen sensation.
(C)Getty Images
There’s been only one goal so far, in the 4-0 win over Saudi Arabia, but a look at the dribbles across the tournament will show that at the top the rankings are both Yamal and Messi. There have been small signs of the player getting back to peak form – but it feels fitting that the final might be where his greatest impact could come.
Coming face-to-face with the legend he’s seen as replacing as the world’s best, Yamal has already achieved more at 19 than Messi had at this stage of his career. However, he has some way to go to even start being talked about in the same conversation as Lionel Messi.
The best way to start would be a World Cup win, and allow a new picture of the two icons that will usurp one of football’s biggest ever coincidental star-aligning moments.
However, as we’ve found out time and time again – and especially at this tournament – you can never doubt the genius of Messi, and it almost feels like destiny that he will end his World Cup career by making history once again.
Watch World Cup archive, highlights and documentaries for FREE on DAZN
DAZN is the home of FIFA+, a vast library of on-demand football content, including World Cup archive, iconic documentaries, player profiles, live matches, and both full-match replays and highlights.
Watch it all for FREE on DAZN on smart TVs, phones, tablets, streaming devices, game consoles and web browsers.
