World Cup final: Trump, half-time show and everything but the football – live

Key events46m agoPreambleFacundo Iglesia is on the ground for us in Buenos Aires to take in the atmosphere among Argentina fans:Argentines can’t be accused of tempering their trademark intensity – or their superstitions – in the hours leading up to the World Cup final. On the eve of the match, thousands of people - mostly parents with their children – flocked to Buenos Aires’ Parque Rivadavia to trade or buy Panini stickers, racing to fill their albums just in time. Many tucked stickers of the Spanish players into freezers, an accessible, popularized bit of witchcraft meant to curse the opposing squad.Now, on the day of the final, under a persistent drizzle, hundreds are waving flags and blowing vuvuzelas at the Obelisco - the city’s designated meeting point to celebrate the national team, whatever the result may be. The streets leading to the monument are packed with fans and street vendors hawking flags, face paint, and plastic ponchos.María de las Nieves López, a Paraguayan pizzeria owner who traveled from Ezeiza, a city 35 kilometers outside the capital, wasn’t fazed by the rain or the lack of a screen near the monument.“It’s Lio [Messi]’s last one. We wanted to come and cheer him and the rest of the squad on - to support them from here. We’ll watch the game on our phones if we have to,” she said.López, who has lived in the country for 25 years, carried a 20-year-old doll she credits with bringing “good luck,” because it “had watched all the games.”“Well, we’ve been winning so far,” she said. “I promised her that, if Argentina wins the final, I’ll buy her a new dress.”The closing ceremony is off to a good start. Or rather not start at all. It was supposed to get underway 90 mins before kickoff but is yet to do so. There are often delays when Donald Trump attends sporting events as the arena is secured. It’s unclear as yet whether kickoff will be delayed. I’m sure they can scrap some bits of this closing ceremony to hurry things along. No one will mind if Robbie Williams is bumped, surely?Alexander Abnos is at the stadium for us, and has some team news (sort of):Spain have just entered the stadium and are wandering around in the center of the field. A team of Fifa volunteers are gathered holding what looks to be a very large tarp, which presumably will be a key part of the closing ceremony. I think Spain team may have to move....The world’s most famous tarp in action. Photograph: Elsa/Getty ImagesAnd here comes the tarp! It’s an artistic and frankly kinda tacky composite of a number of New York City landmarks. Clockwise from bottom left on your TV screens: The new Calatrava train hub at World Trade Center, 1 World Trade, The Brooklyn Bridge, the Empire State Building, The Vessel, some building I don’t recognize, the Guggenheim, the Chrysler Building, the Statue of Liberty, 30 Rock, the Washington Square arch, the Flatiron building.Good news from Fifa! There will be a “fan-centric pre-match ceremony” today, which means “an immersive, 360-degree concept that transforms the stadium into a shared stage. No matter where supporters are seated, each will have a distinct and engaging perspective, with extra-large country flag banners and on-pitch elements carefully positioned to involve the crowd in an authentic and meaningful way.”I bet there’s a hologram. There is always a hologram. It gets better though. At long last, Fifa is going to pay attention to its poor, neglected sponsors: “the youth programme and players’ tunnel will feature both traditional and new integrations of FIFA’s Commercial Partners, thanks to the involvement of adidas, Coca-Cola, Kia, Mengniu, Qatar Airways and Quaker.” At first, I read that as “quakers” and I was expecting a silent prayer meeting, which would have been quite nice.The pre-match ceremony will also include “additional elements such as coloured smoke or pyrotechnics.” Coloured smoke OR pyrotechnics? $5,000 a ticket and you don’t even get both? This better be a good game.Kevin Hart is required by federal law to attend any event in the US that draws a crowd of more than 598 people. Therefore, Kevin Hart is at today’s final.Eniko Hart and Kevin Hart arrive for today’s final. Photograph: Ryan Pierse/FIFA/Getty ImagesBank of America CEO Brian Moynihan says the World Cup has generated around $20bn of economic activity in the US, roughly the equivalent of the price of three tickets to today’s final. It should be noted that the figures sporting events generate are often dubious at best:PreambleHello. And welcome to our Everything But The Football liveblog of the World Cup final, which suddenly becomes a little more relevant now that Fifa has decided to turn the World Cup final into a Super Bowl (allegedly one of 104 Super Bowls at this year’s tournament!).What has Gianni and Co got lined up for you? Well, we’ll have:1) Very popular and smart and eloquent president Donald Trump turning up to be booed by people who have paid good money to do so (see also: the 2026 NBA finals, the 2017 World Series, the 2025 Ryder Cup, the 2025 US Open tennis men’s final and a random Washington Commanders game last season):We’ll also have a half-time show, featuring BTS, Shakira, Madonna, Burna Boy and Justin Bieber all watched over by curator of loving grace, Chris Martin.But first! We’ll have a closing ceremony starting 90 minutes before kickoff, starring streamer IShowSpeed and various celebrities who were last cutting edge at least 25 years ago, including Nicole Scherzinger; Robbie Williams and Tom Cruise. There is a 90% chance Cruise will jump off something high (Gianni’s forehead?).