Football didn't have it easy at the 2026 World Cup in the United States of America, Mexico, and Canada. There were questionable decisions by the sport's governing body FIFA, a lot of spectacle, and a final in which only one team actually played football. After a total of 104 games in this biggest-ever World Cup, Spain were deservedly crowned champions and for the first time, a country's men's and women's teams are both world champions at the same time.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino described the tournament as the "greatest sporting, social and cultural event in humanity," while US President Donald Trump congratulated FIFA on what he called "one of the all-time greatest sporting events in history."
But was it really one of the greatest events in human history?" Here's what will be remembered.
How was the biggest-ever tournament received by viewers?
Fears of empty stadiums—especially in the US, where football isn't the number one sport—proved unfounded. According to FIFA, a total of 6,810,966 fans attended the tournament, the first to be co-hosted by three countries. This set a new record for World Cup attendance.
