C’est la Vie, France

BUENOS AIRES — C’est la vie, France. The joy that erupted with Gonzalo Montiel’s title-winning penalty kick — a fake that caused France’s goalie to dive to the right as the ball went home to the left — was for more than the World Cup title. It was for the redemption of Argentina at a time of political and economic woes.The mood in the streets of Buenos Aires will never be forgotten as long as soccer is played. Nor would this match that brought the World Cup back to Argentina for the third time in its history. The game against France, tied three to three after 120 minutes of play, was widely dubbed as the most exciting World Cup finale in the history of the sport.In a battle of the world’s top forwards, Kylian Mbappe of France and the Argentine matinee idol Lionel Messi, it was the 23-year-old French wonder boy who scored more goals and won the tournament’s golden boot. At 35, though, it was to be Mr. Messi who fulfilled his final chance to add a World Cup to his most impressive soccer resume. Suffering from deep economic malaise and a political imbroglio, Argentina needed this victory. The country is set to declare a national holiday tomorrow and party invitations are delivered across the country. Images of shirtless men waving their Argentinean jerseys and cars fully decorated with flags are flooding the streets as the whole country heads to the obelisk to celebrate together.Once the game was over, cars and people quickly crowded side to side in the middle of the city’s avenues, as strangers excitedly screamed at each other with tears in their eyes. Team songs are chanted in the streets and Mr. Messi’s number 10 jersey is the most common attire at Buenos Aires. The Obelisk, which is situated at the city center, is lit up in the country’s blue and white colors. It has been a gathering spot for locals through the tournament at Doha, on the other side of the world.Franco Lopez, who works at a convenience store near the Obelisk, said that Buenos Aires has become the city that never sleeps. “People are finally happy,” Mr. Lopez told the Sun. “After everything that happened in the country, economically and politically, we need this triumph.”Mr. Lopez’s convenience shop has an Argentinian flag hanging on it, just like nearly every store, balcony, or building in Buenos Aires has had throughout the tournament. Some flags have Mr. Messi’s face printed on them as locals brag about having one of the best soccer players in history.Mr. Messi, who has declared 2022 might mark his final World Cup, led the team in the match against the defending champion, France. He scored two goals in the match, as well as the first goal in the sudden death penalty kick shoutout that came after 120 minutes of excitement-packed game. Mr. Mbappe scored a hat trick in the game with three goals, to which he added one another in the post-game penalty shootout. He and Mr. Messi are teammates at a French League club, Paris Saint-Germain, and for once their rivalry as the sport’s best lived up to the hype. “We were born to suffer,” Argentina’s midfielder Rodrigo de Paul said after Argentina was proclaimed champion. Shortly after, Nicolas Tagliafico agreed. “If we don’t suffer it doesn’t count,” he said. Just before the Qatar games began, Mr. Mbappe, who won the World Cup in 2018 and eliminated Argentina during the round of 16, said that South American teams, including Argentina and Brazil, “don’t have the quality to reach the World Cup.”“In South America football isn’t as advanced as in Europe,” he said. “That’s why, if you look at the last World Cup, it’s always the Europeans that win.” Now it’s Argentina’s time to gloat.On the field it played much better for most of the match. Several French players were reported sick with a virus, and the team seemed sluggish for most of the game. Mr. Mbappe managed to keep his team in the game, with several minutes of brilliance, but if France was sick, Argentina put on a soccer clinic. Off the field, Argentinians meanwhile found sucor in soccer. Zay Rojas, the manager of one of the most frequented pubs in Buenos Aires, “Locos por el fútbol,” or “Crazy for Soccer,” says she often has fights with French people who frequent her bar and question Argentina’s way of celebrating.At Ms. Rojas’s pub, a group of French people, who had attended the pub to experience the Argentine passion, told Ms. Rojas they found it “funny” that the country was celebrating the semi-final triumph as if they had just won it all. “It’s the way we celebrate in Argentina,” Ms. Rojas said. “It’s as if they were questioning our culture and traditions.”“Around 70 percent of the people who will come on Sunday have been watching the matches at my pub since the first game,” Ms. Rojas said. Now they are celebrating winning it all. Argentina’s current annual inflation rate is 92.4 percent, as month to month prices rose 4.9 percent in November, according to the Argentinian National Institute of Statistics and Census. Annual inflation is expected to reach 100 percent this month, according to the institute, which also reports that more than 36 percent of Argentines live below the poverty line. But who cares? People are screaming at the top of their lungs to let Mr. Messi and his teammates know how they feel about bringing the cup home, so they can forget all their troubles for a day. Or a month. Or for as long as soccer joy can last.

C’est la Vie, France

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