I have blogged several times before about how I am not remotely a soccer fan. I have watched exactly one full professional soccer match (the extremely low-scoring 2010 World Cup final) in my entire life. I know that soccer is the most popular worldwide sport. My son Iver has become very interested in playing it. And yet I still find the sport incredibly slow--with too much running and not enough scoring to hold my attention.
Kelvin somehow keeps track of big national and international sporting events other than tennis (my favorite!) and put the TV on on Sunday morning, while France and Argentina were late in the second half of the final match and Argentina was ahead 2-0. We watched with interest as France come back with two quick goals, and then watched even more closely as, in the final minutes of extra time, Argentina pulled ahead only to have the score tied back up on a penalty kick by France's talented Kylian Mbappe, who ended the night with a rare hat-trick.
And then came the high-pressure shoot-out, in which Argentina and veteran Lionel Messi prevailed 4-2 to win his first World Cup trophy (I didn't really even know previously how shoot-outs worked. I actually just learned this year what "off-sides" meant). WOW!
I'm reluctant to embrace superlatives, but even the experts (and true futbol aficionados) are calling this final the most thrilling World Cup final (and perhaps soccer match?) in history. I can say that it certainly was the best one I've ever watched (with my N of two)!
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