Updated

Updated · ABC News · Jul 19

Argentina Fans Swarm Times Square Before 2026 World Cup Final as Spain Backers Gather Across New York

Updated

Updated · ABC News · Jul 19

Argentina Fans Swarm Times Square Before 2026 World Cup Final as Spain Backers Gather Across New York

Q: After Mbappé seized the all-time scoring record, can a final victory salvage Messi’s claim as the undisputed greatest of all time?

Yes. If Messi leads Argentina past Spain, it would not erase Mbappé’s new World Cup scoring record, but it would strengthen Messi’s overall GOAT case more than any single individual statistic could weaken it. Mbappé’s achievement is real and significant: he has moved to 22 World Cup goals, ahead of Messi’s 21, and he is younger with time to extend that mark. That matters in any historical comparison. But the greatest-of-all-time debate has never rested on one scoring record alone. It weighs peak level, longevity, playmaking, trophies, influence on matches and success on the biggest stage. On that broader measure, Messi’s résumé is already exceptional: the 2022 World Cup, multiple Copa América titles, a record eight Ballons d’Or, and a career widely defined not just by goals but by creation and control of games. In this tournament, at 39, he has again driven Argentina to the final and tied Miroslav Klose’s old World Cup mark before Mbappé passed him. A win over Spain would add something historically rare: back-to-back World Cups, a feat no men’s team has managed since Brazil in 1962. If Messi captains Argentina to that, in what is expected to be his last World Cup match, it becomes a powerful capstone that few legends can match. So Mbappé may now own the scoring record, but a second straight World Cup would leave Messi with the stronger all-around case. It would not end debate for everyone, but it would make his claim harder than ever to dispute.

3 articles · Updated · ABC News · Jul 19

Thousands of Argentina supporters packed Times Square for a pre-match banderazo, turning the Manhattan landmark into the biggest fan rally seen there during the 2026 World Cup.
The celebration began in the early evening and was still surging hours later as fans without final tickets joined those heading to the decider against Spain simply to share the atmosphere.
Argentina's travelling supporters have staged large rallies before every match, with fans framing the gathering as a show of national pride despite the country's economic strains.
Spain's presence was smaller but organized around La Nacional in Manhattan's West Village, where the 1868-founded Spanish cultural institution expected hundreds for the final and possible post-match celebrations.
The scenes underscored a wider theme of the tournament: beyond the football, diaspora communities, visiting fans and locals have turned New York gathering spots into major shared World Cup stages.