We’re so close to the 2026 FIFA World Cup final. History will be written once again to conclude an incredible World Cup full of upsets, all-time performances, and unmatched drama. With that in mind, let’s go back to look at the last 40 years of World Cup finals and rank those ten matches from worst to first.
10. 1994 World Cup Final: Brazil defeats Italy (0-0, 3-2 in penalties)
This felt like a match nobody wanted to win. The 1994 World Cup is certainly not among the most memorable, and the final was an appropriate culmination of a lackluster tournament. Brazil and Italy historically bring all-time talent to these contests, but neither truly had that in 1994. Highlights of regulation time include Brazilian striker Romarío missing a sitter at the far post, and Italian keeper Gianluca Pagliuca letting a ball squirt between his hands in front of goal, but it harmlessly struck the post and was recovered. Chance creation was there, but the finishing by both sides was abysmal.
It was appropriate that the penalties ended when Roberto Baggio, arguably the biggest superstar in the match, sailed his kick over the bar to clinch the Cup for Brazil — an unremarkable match with an ignominious end.
9. 1990 World Cup Final: West Germany defeats Argentina (1-0)
Anticipation was the death of this game. After an electric 1986 final between these two countries, one we will get into later, the rematch promised fireworks. Instead, we got a dud.
Despite the presence of some incredible star talents, including Diego Maradona and Lothar Matthäus, the attack was going nowhere. West Germany clearly held the upper hand in the match but was unable to convert that advantage, even after a 65th-minute red card for Argentine substitute Pedro Monzon. In the 85th minute, the tie was broken from the penalty spot, on a controversial call by referee Edgardo Mendez. Argentine frustrations boiled over soon after with a second red card, and the game ended with the nine-man side trying in vain to find an equalizer. It was a sad end to what was a great World Cup.
8. 1998 World Cup Final: France defeats Brazil (3-0)
Sometimes, expectations are worse than no expectations. If 1994 lacked the star power expected of a World Cup final, 1998 had all the power. Brazil was led by Ronaldo Nazário, arguably the greatest player in team history not named Pelé, but had team legends such as Roberto Carlos, Rivaldo, and Cafú. France brought together their best collection of talent in team history. Led by the iconic Zinedine Zidane, they also had Lilian Thuram, Didier Deschamps, and Marcel Desailly in the starting lineup. Just to flex, they had upcoming stars Thierry Henry and Patrick Vieira coming off the bench. It’s an incredible nexus of talent.
Which makes it all the more disappointing that this one wasn’t close. Ronaldo nearly missed the match with a knock and had Brazil’s best scoring chance 20 minutes in, but missed. Zidane scored only minutes later to take the lead, and bagged his second goal just before halftime. France had complete control over the match, and Vieira provided an assist to Emmanuel Petit right at the death to seal this snoozer. If you’re a French fan, this is probably your favorite match; as a neutral observer, it’s never fun to watch such an uncompetitive game, even if all the talent in the world were present.
7. 2018 World Cup Final: France defeats Croatia (4-2)
Goals aren’t everything. It’s all about tension. France was the dominant team in the 2018 World Cup, while Croatia was the Cinderella team flying through it. David loses to Goliath all the time, but the way that the Croatians went out felt sad.
The French took the lead early on a Mario Mandzukic own goal, with the Croatians working hard to equalize less than 10 minutes later. But a converted French penalty handed them back the lead before halftime, and a pair of goals by Paul Pogba and Kylian Mbappé after halftime settled the affair. Mandzukic’s 69th-minute goal to make it 4-2 felt more like window dressing than anything, as this vaunted French defense kept things tight down the stretch.
The stars were here: Luka Modrić had an unbelievable tournament, and a teenage Mbappé announced himself on the world stage with a goal in a World Cup final win. It wasn’t a bad match by any stretch of the imagination, but it wasn’t close for much of the 90 minutes, and the clearly superior team winning brings less excitement.
6. 2002 World Cup Final: Brazil defeats Germany (2-0)
Largely remembered as the World Cup where Ronaldo Nazário got his revenge, he did it in a big way against Germany. The legendary striker bagged both goals in the game after halftime, pushing Brazil over the line in a tense match. The attacking talent was sure on display here; Brazil came to the party with Rivaldo and a young Ronaldinho, while Germany had a young Miroslav Klose, who went on to become the record-setter for most World Cup goals.
The game gets a slight boost over other matches because, in the end, the biggest star made the difference. There were also some incredibly tense misses in the lead-up, including Oliver Neuville’s rocket free kick off the post and several exceptional saves by German goalkeeper Oliver Kahn. Though the first goal by Ronaldo was a keeper error, the second came on a beautiful dummy to get him the touch in the box, and he slotted it home below Kahn’s arms. It was a fun chapter in the long history of World Cup matches between these two countries.
Oh, and who could forget the hair?
5. 2006 World Cup Final: Italy defeats France (1-1, 5-3 on penalties)
Depending on who you ask, this is either an all-timer or one that should be forgotten. I’m somewhere in the middle.
France’s unbelievably talented lineup included Zinedine Zidane, Thierry Henry, Franck Ribery, Patrick Vieira, and Lilian Thuram. Yet that exceptional attack produced only one goal, a beautifully struck seventh-minute penalty by Zidane. Italy’s defense-first side equalized in the 19th minute off a beautiful corner kick delivery by Andrea Pirlo. The rest of regulation was largely uneventful, but it was extra time when one of the most infamous World Cup moments occurred.
Zidane, after nearly scoring early in extra time, committed one of the biggest blunders in sporting history. Zizu headbutted Italy’s goal-scorer, Marco Materazzi, directly in the chest during the 110th minute. He was immediately shown a red card, and the French were forced to go into penalty kicks without their best spot-kick taker. David Trezeguet took the second PK for France and banged his effort off the crossbar. The Italians converted all five of their penalties to go home victorious, while France’s 1998 hero Zidane was forced to deal with a moment he can never live down.
4. 2014 World Cup Final: Germany defeats Argentina (1-0)
This was quite the World Cup heading into the final. After two narrow wins in the knockout stages, Germany humiliated the host nation, Brazil, in the semifinals, winning 7-1 before a despondent Brazilian crowd. Argentina, led by Lionel Messi at the peak of his powers, navigated three straight one-goal wins to reach the final. It was a clash of the new and the old: Argentina was buoyed by a single superstar, Messi, while the Germans relied on tactics and egalitarian play to be more than the sum of their parts.
Argentina missed several huge chances in regulation, while Germany’s Thomas Müller-Miroslav Klose attack failed to generate much. But the defenses buckled down to force extra time. In the end, young wunderkind Mario Götze came off the bench to produce a moment of magic in the 113th minute. It was a wonderful stylistic clash that felt emblematic of the shift in worldwide footballing philosophy, and a lovely conclusion to the third edition of Germany vs. Argentina in the World Cup final.
3. 2010 World Cup Final: Spain defeats the Netherlands (1-0)
The backdrop of the first World Cup in Africa set the stage for another World Cup first: a Spanish victory. And what a team it was to make history for their country.
Spain put together arguably the greatest midfield in World Cup history between Andres Iniesta, Xabi Alonso, Xavi Hernandez, and Sergio Busquets. Those four blended elite passing, defense, and pace control that set the tone for this championship team. The Netherlands had Arjen Robben, a world-class attacker at the peak of his powers, along with Robin Van Persie and Wesley Sneijder, forming an elite attacking trio.
This was a true test of wills. One side of football is the beautiful, free-flowing game, and the other is the ugly, grind-it-out style. In a match that included 14 yellow cards and clinical defense all around, it took until the 116th minute for Iniesta to find the winner for Spain. The added tension of both teams vying for the first World Cup trophy in their countries’ histories made this an all-timer.
2. 1986 World Cup Final: Argentina defeats West Germany (3-2)
The drama leading up to this game was hard to match. Argentina, fueled by the greatness of Diego Maradona, got through the knockout stages with a pair of one-goal wins, including the infamous quarterfinal against England. The Hand of God is perhaps the most memorable goal in World Cup history, but Maradona’s Goal of the Century soon after is one of its chief rivals. On the other side, West Germany didn’t concede a goal in any of the three knockout rounds, including a penalty shootout win over the host country, Mexico.
In the Estadio Azteca, one of the true cathedrals of the sport, these two excellent sides played an all-time match. 115,000 fans watched Argentina take a 1-0 lead into halftime, the result of a goalkeeper error. The Argentines doubled their lead 10 minutes into the second half, before German head coach Franz Beckenbauer changed the match with several substitutions. Goals in the 74th and 81st minutes put Germany level heading into the last 10 minutes.
It was then that Maradona made his mark. The best player in the world was locked in a duel with Lothar Matthäus, but he managed to beat his coverage and slip a pass into Jorge Burruchaga in the 84th minute, who buried the winning goal. It was a second half for the ages between two supremely talented sides, and the culmination of an excellent World Cup.
1. 2022 World Cup Final: Argentina defeats France (3-3, 4-2 on penalties)
Here’s the question: is it possible to have a better World Cup final? My answer is probably no.
Let’s break it down by the important elements. Evenly matched teams? Yes. Star power? Absolutely. Tension? You bet. Big performances by the stars? Duh.
Lionel Messi came into this World Cup running out of chances to get his dream trophy. Already building a case for the best to ever kick a ball, Messi’s disappointment in 2014 needed redemption. It was fitting to face France, the defending champions, and his Paris Saint-Germain co-star Kylian Mbappé. And boy, did those two go at it.
Messi opened the scoring with a penalty, and Angel Di Maria finished off a beautiful counterattack to give Argentina a 2-0 lead inside 40 minutes. France looked dead in the water, failing to register a shot on target in the first 70+ minutes. But they drew a penalty in the 78th minute, and Mbappé converted easily. Then Mbappé played a beautiful one-two to score a rocket volley, leveling the match. In extra time, Messi scored his second goal on a rebound in the 108th minute, only for Mbappé to equalize on another penalty after his shot attempt glanced off an arm. At the very death of extra time, Argentine goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez denied Randal Kolo Muani with a ridiculous kick save, sending the match to penalty kicks.
The penalties had drama as well, but a key save by Dibu led to Gonzalo Montiel redeeming himself after the handball penalty, as he buried the winner, handing Messi his greatest triumph. Truly, you’d have to write an incredible script to make a final better than this one.
