2018 FIFA World Cup
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2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st edition of the FIFA World Cup, an international football tournament contested by the men's national teams of the member associations of Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), with Gianni Infantino as its president. The tournament took place in Russia from June 14 to July 15, 2018, with Vladimir Putin as the president of the host country, and featured 32 national teams, including Germany, the defending champions, and Brazil, the most successful team in the history of the tournament, with five FIFA World Cup titles. The tournament was won by France, who defeated Croatia 4-2 in the final, with Kylian Mbappé being awarded the FIFA World Cup Best Young Player award, and Luka Modrić being awarded the FIFA World Cup Golden Ball award.
● Overview
The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the first FIFA World Cup to be held in Eastern Europe, and the first to be held in Russia since the Soviet Union hosted the 1980 Summer Olympics. The tournament featured a number of high-profile matches, including the opening match between Russia and Saudi Arabia, which was won by Russia 5-2, and the final match between France and Croatia, which was won by France 4-2, with Antoine Griezmann scoring a goal and being awarded the FIFA World Cup Silver Boot award. The tournament also featured a number of notable players, including Lionel Messi of Argentina, Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal, and Neymar of Brazil, who all played for their respective national teams, along with Zlatan Ibrahimović of Sweden and Andrés Iniesta of Spain.
● Qualification
The qualification process for the 2018 FIFA World Cup began in March 2015 and ended in November 2017, with a total of 210 teams from six FIFA confederations competing for 31 spots in the final tournament, including UEFA, CONMEBOL, CAF, AFC, CONCACAF, and OFC. The qualification process was organized by the respective confederations, with UEFA being the largest confederation, featuring 54 teams, including England, Spain, and Germany, and CONMEBOL being the smallest confederation, featuring 10 teams, including Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay. The qualification process featured a number of notable matches, including the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA) match between Italy and Sweden, which was won by Sweden 1-0, and the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONMEBOL) match between Brazil and Argentina, which was won by Brazil 3-0, with Tite as the coach of Brazil.
● Teams
A total of 32 teams qualified for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, including the host team Russia, and the defending champions Germany, as well as other notable teams such as Brazil, Argentina, and Spain, with Julen Lopetegui as the coach of Spain. The teams were divided into eight groups of four teams each, with the top two teams from each group advancing to the knockout stage, featuring FIFA World Cup-winning coaches such as Didier Deschamps of France and Joachim Löw of Germany. The teams featured a number of notable players, including Kylian Mbappé of France, Luka Modrić of Croatia, and Eden Hazard of Belgium, who all played important roles in the tournament, along with Paul Pogba of France and Kevin De Bruyne of Belgium.
● Venues
The 2018 FIFA World Cup was held in 12 venues across 11 cities in Russia, including the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, which hosted the opening match and the final match, and the Saint Petersburg Stadium in Saint Petersburg, which hosted the semi-final match between France and Belgium, with Gareth Southgate as the coach of England and Roberto Martínez as the coach of Belgium. The venues were selected by the FIFA World Cup Organizing Committee, which was chaired by Vitaly Mutko, and featured a number of state-of-the-art facilities, including the Kazan Arena in Kazan and the Sochi Stadium in Sochi, with Leonid Slutsky as the coach of Russia.
● Group Stage
The group stage of the 2018 FIFA World Cup featured 48 matches, with each team playing three matches against the other teams in their group, including Mexico against Germany, Portugal against Spain, and Argentina against Iceland, with Heimir Hallgrímsson as the coach of Iceland. The top two teams from each group advanced to the knockout stage, with the group winners being Russia, Spain, France, Croatia, Brazil, Germany, Belgium, and Uruguay, featuring coaches such as Stanislav Cherchesov of Russia and Óscar Tabárez of Uruguay.
● Knockout Stage
The knockout stage of the 2018 FIFA World Cup featured 16 matches, with the teams competing in a single-elimination format, including the Round of 16 match between France and Argentina, which was won by France 4-3, and the Quarter-final match between Brazil and Belgium, which was won by Belgium 2-1, with Thibaut Courtois as the goalkeeper of Belgium. The stage featured a number of notable matches, including the Semi-final match between France and Belgium, which was won by France 1-0, and the Third place play-off match between Belgium and England, which was won by Belgium 2-0, with Hugo Lloris as the captain of France.
● Final
The final match of the 2018 FIFA World Cup was played between France and Croatia on July 15, 2018, at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, with Nestor Pitana as the referee, and was won by France 4-2, with Kylian Mbappé scoring a goal and being awarded the FIFA World Cup Best Young Player award, and Luka Modrić being awarded the FIFA World Cup Golden Ball award, and Didier Deschamps being awarded the FIFA World Cup title as the coach of France, along with Zinedine Zidane as a former FIFA World Cup-winning player and coach of Real Madrid. The match featured a number of notable players, including Antoine Griezmann of France and Ivan Perišić of Croatia, and was attended by a number of high-profile guests, including Vladimir Putin and Emmanuel Macron, with FIFA being the governing body of the tournament.