Argentina and France are again one step away from a final that would drag the 2022 World Cup Final back into the center of the sport. Four years after Lionel Messi lifted the trophy and Kylian Mbappé answered with a hat-trick in one of the wildest championship matches ever played, both sides are among the last four teams left in the 2026 tournament.
That is why the search interest is back today. A repeat of that final is no longer a memory exercise; it is a live possibility, with one more round now separating the teams from another meeting for the title. Mbappé, the face of French football, remains the player most associated with that night because he became only the second player to score a hat-trick in a World Cup final.
Argentina have earned their place by surviving stern tests from Cape Verde and Egypt before beating Switzerland in the quarter-finals. Julian Alvarez, Lautaro Martinez and Enzo Fernandez have carried the scoring burden in different moments, giving Scaloni options rather than a single source of goals. France, meanwhile, have reached the same point while conceding only one goal in the competition, a defensive record that explains why they are being spoken about as genuine contenders again.
But the path is not set up for a simple rematch. England have grown into one of the most balanced sides in the tournament under Thomas Tuchel, with Jude Bellingham emerging as a leader alongside Harry Kane. Spain have been just as hard to break down, conceding only one goal themselves, and they are the team that will test France’s attackers in the semi-final. That leaves the repeat final as a possibility, not a promise.
If Argentina and France both clear their semi-finals, the 2022 World Cup Final can be replayed on the biggest stage again. If either slips, England or Spain will change the script and force the tournament toward a different ending, one that would still be decided by the same narrow margins that made the last final unforgettable.
