IFFHS STATISTICS - WORLD CUP 2022 DAY 23
The statistics on 2022 World Cup day 23 (18 December)
*Argentina vs France was the 11th World Cup final competed between a South American and European representatives; South Americans won in 8 occasions, Europeans in 3.
*Argentina have won their 3rd World Cup (after 1978 and 1986), 36 years since their last win in 1986. Only Italy have had a longer gap between two victorious World Cups (44 years, from 1938 to 1982).
*Argentina became the 2nd World Cup winner in the history to lose their opening game (1-2 to Saudi Arabia), after Spain in 2010.
*It was 4th of the last 5 World Cup finals to go to extra-time, as many as the previous 16 finals combined.
*Before this final, France have won 7 of their World Cup knockout games in a row. In the World Cup history, only Brazil had a longer winning run in knockout matches from (9 games from 1958 to 1970).
*Lionel Scaloni became the youngest coach (44 years) to win the trophy since his compatriot César Luis Menotti in 1978 (39 years).
*Scaloni became the third coach in history to win both the World Cup (2022) and Copa América (2021), after two Brazilians, Mário Zagallo (1970 World Cup, 1997 Copa América) and Carlos Alberto Parreira (1994 World Cup, 2004 Copa América).
*Didier Deschamps became the 4th coach to lead a team in 2 consecutive World Cup finals, after Vittorio Pozzo with Italy (1934, 1938), Carlos Bilardo with Argentina (1986, 1990), and Franz Beckenbauer with Germany (1986, 1990).
*At least one player from both Inter Milan and Bayern Munich has played in each of the last 11 World Cup finals (from 1982 to 2022). This tradition has continued in Qatar courtesy of Lautaro Martínez (ArgentInter), Dayot Upamecano and Kingsley Coman (Bayern).
*The players aged 34+ have scored 3 goals in this final game (Lionel Messi 2, Ángel Di María 1), more than in all the previous finals combined (2).
*Ángel Di María is the fourth player (and first Argentine) to score in a Copa América final and in a World Cup final, after Hector Castro (Uruguay), Pele and Ronaldo (both Brazil).
*Ángel Di María became the 1st player to score in the final of the Olympic Games, a continental championship (Copa America) and the World Cup.
*Messi became the first player to score in all 5 stages (the group, round of 16, quarter-final, semi-final and final) in a single edition of the World Cup since the current format was introduced.
*Messi has scored his 100th career goal with his right foot.
*Messi became the new all-time record holder for most games played at the World Cup (26). He surpassed Lothar Matthäus (25).
*Messi is the 2nd Argentine with a brace in a World Cup final after Mario Alberto Kempes in 1978.
*Messi set the record for penalties taken in the history of the World Cup (not counting shootouts) – 6, surpassing Harry Kane (5).
*For the first time in the entire history of the World Cup, a team (Argentina) had 5 penalties in favor in a single edition.
*Kylian Mbappe became the 2nd player to score a World Cup final hat-trick, after Geoff Hurst for England vs Germany in 1966.
*For the first time, as many as 3 penalties were appointed in a World Cup final. The only previous final with multiple penalties (not counting shootouts) was Germany vs Netherlands in 1974 (2).
*For the first time in World Cup history, two best goal-scorers (Mbappe 8, Messi 7) represented the same club (PSG).
*For the 2nd time in World Cup history, two players have scored 7+ goals (after 1970, Gerd Müller with 10 and Jairzinho with 7).
*172 goals have been scored at the 2022 World Cup, a new tournament record, surpassing 171 goals in both 1998 and 2014 editions.