The FIFA World Cup 2022 ended with euphoria for Argentina which lifted the trophy. Messi’s last World Cup, the match saw fierce competition between France and Argentina. Hosted by Qatar, the match started on November 20 and ended on December 18.

This World Cup stands apart for many reasons. In this World Cup, highest number of goals were scored (172 goals). With over $200 billion budgets, this was also one of the costliest events.

In a conversation with Nabodita Ganguly, B Baskar, talks about the FIFA World Cup in detail. . Here are the three things they talked about:

FIFA World Cup 2022

The 2022 World Cup grabbed the world’s attention. Shredded in controversies, hosting nations received lots of criticisms for its migrant issues, controversial LGBTQIA+ issues. While initially, the media covered the controversies in length, it faded out, after a point of time.

Eventually, conversations were about the game. People talked about the rise of Morocco, the first African nation to enter the semifinals in the World Cup. There were discussions about new nations that performed well such as Senegal. There were lots of enthusiasm about the finals, that is described as the “greatest ever finals” by Baskar.

A very different Messi

Messi’s retirement came as no surprise to us. Considering his age (35 years), this news was around the corner. Baskar, explains that during this World Cup, Messi showed his emotional side. He was more aggressive, more to the face.

FIFA World Cup 2026

The 23rd FIFA World Cup will be hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada in 2026. The World Cup will have more teams, that is 48. With 16 more teams, the question remains hanging if India will get a chance in the World Cup. India has always been passionate about football. However, it is not recognized as the country famous for football. Why is that? Baskar says that it will take time for India to reach there. He mentions that for football to succeed in the country, India has to start finding talents from a young age and train them. Baskar hopes that India qualifies for the World Cup during his lifetime. That is a dream shared jointly by all of us.

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