The FIFA World Cup is scheduled to begin on November 20 in Qatar.
32 teams will battle it out in the hope to lift the biggest and most prestigious prize in international football.
Ahead of the World Cup, video game developer EA Sports has used its simulator to predict that Lionel Messi-led Argentina will lift the trophy after beating Brazil in the final.
The EA Sports simulator had correctly predicted the winner of the last three editions- 2010, 2014 and 2018.
Group stage
According to the simulator, tournament favourites Brazil, Argentina, France, and Germany all made smooth progress through their first three matches to qualify for the Round of 16 as group winners.
There was drama in Group B as favourites England finished second while The United States of America (USA) finished top.
Round of 16
In the round of 16, two European giants England and Netherlands clashed where the latter defeated the Three Lions by a scoreline of 3-1. Argentina beat Denmark while defending champion France clinched a narrow win against Poland. Brazil and Cristiano Ronaldo-led Portugal had a relatively easy qualification to the quarterfinals after beating the Korea Republic and Switzerland by a 3-0 and 2-0 margin respectively.
USA beat defending Africa Cup of Nations champion Senegal thanks to a Christian Pulisic brace and 2018 runner-up Croatia beat Spain 2-1. In the exciting clash between Germany and Belgium, the Germans mounted a late comeback to beat Belgium 2-1.
Quarterfinals
Argentina beat the Netherlands by a narrow 1-0 margin courtesy of a goal by Lionel Messi.
Elsewhere, France and Portugal beat USA and Croatia respectively to seal their place in the semis.
The pressure of this stage of the tournament was clearly visible, as three of the four quarterfinals ended with a 1-0 scoreline.
Brazil had a chance to take revenge against Germany as both teams came up for the first time since the Selecao’s 7-1 home defeat at the hands of Germany in the 2014 World cup. While the scoreline wasn’t that extravagant, Brazil did get its revenge following a 3-0 win to qualify for the semis.
Semifinals
In the first semifinal between Argentina and France, the La Albiceleste overcame France after a tight 1-0 win and ended Le Blues’ hope of defending the World Cup title.
The semifinal between Brazil and Portugal was a nail-biter with the match going into penalties after 120 minutes of football could not separate the teams. In the shootout, Brazil overcame the pressure to beat Portugal 5-4 and set up an all South American final against Argentina.
Final
Two of football’s greatest rivals Argentina and Brazil were set to meet in a FIFA World Cup for the first time since 1990 and for the first time ever in the final.
It was a tense battle between the footballing giants but it was Argentina that edged out its arch-rival by a 1-0 scoreline courtesy of a goal by Messi to lift its first World Cup in 1986 and its third overall. Lionel Messi scored his eighth goal in the final and with the World Cup, filled the last remaining spot in his trophy cabinet.
Who won the Golden Boot?
It was a tournament to remember for Argentina captain Lionel Messi who not only lifted his first World Cup but also won the Golden Boot after finishing as the top-scorer with eight goals.
Who won the Golden Glove?
There was a four-way tie for the Golden Glove between Rui Patricio of Portugal, Alisson of Brazil, Dominik Livakovic of Croatia, and Emiliano Martinez of Argentina, but Martinez bagged the award by virtue of progressing the furthest in the tournament.
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