Lionel Messi received his runners-up medal from Donald Trump following the World Cup final.
Before kick-off, analysts noted the contrast in difficulty between earlier matches and the final. One observer described the previous day's game as resembling a testimonial, with France already eliminated despite Kylian Mbappe scoring twice.
Attention turned to Messi, who faced a Spain side that had conceded only one goal throughout the tournament. The challenge of the final was framed as significantly greater than earlier knockout fixtures.
Mbappe secured his second World Cup Golden Boot. Messi would have shared the award had goal contributions been the sole tiebreaker, given his higher assist count.
After a tearful Messi collected his medal, another former player argued the third-place playoff unfairly inflated Mbappe's tally. The view expressed was that counting those goals disadvantaged Messi in the race for the Golden Boot.
Spain claimed a 1-0 victory in the final and swept the individual honors. Rodri received the Golden Ball as the tournament's best player.
Unai Simon earned the Golden Glove for the top goalkeeping performance. Pau Cubarsi won the Best Young Player Award, edging out teammate Lamine Yamal, also 19.
