The just-concluded football World Cup did not produce a memorable contest in the final. Although both finalists, Spain and Argentina, had talent in ample measure, they contrived to play out a dreary duel.

While Spain managed to win 1-0, Argentina’s cagey tactics did no justice to their talisman, Lionel Messi. On the whole, while the 2026 edition will not be remembered for the quality of play, there were plenty of themes that made it a remarkable tournament.

Firstly, this World Cup marks the end of the era of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, two coterminous titans who both deserve the title of greatest of all time that die-hard fans will award only to Pele and Diego Maradona. Although neither player has announced retirement, this probably was their swansong.

While Ronaldo unfortunately could not produce his best in the World Cup, Messi continued to be influential for Argentina.

Secondly, this World Cup will be remembered for FIFA’s unctuous and unnecessary pandering to the American market. Football’s governing body introduced several ‘innovations’ to make the game more attractive to American audiences and more tenable for American television.

The ‘hydration breaks’ introduced to make space for TV commercials slowed down the momentum of games and broke football’s long-standing resistance to Americanisation of the beautiful sport.

The half-time concert in the final threatens to reduce the game to a circus like the American Superbowl. Football has never needed to become a circus to please its audiences, nor is the American market necessary for the growth of the game.

Third, the progress made by African teams was unmistakable. The continent had 10 teams in the tournament and each of them, including Cape Verde, held their own against the more heralded teams from Europe and Latin America.

All but one went past the first round, and some like Morocco, Egypt and Senegal went toe-to-toe against fancied teams. Egypt were distinctly unlucky to lose to Argentina courtesy dodgy refereeing. While African players’ athletic prowess and football skills were never in doubt, the tactical maturity displayed by every team from the continent was remarkable.

Fourth, Africa has now become the powerhouse of footballing talent. African players’ presence in top leagues right across Europe has been evident for more than two decades.

In the just-concluded World Cup, 135 out of the 1,248 players who played in the tournament were born in Africa.

Most of the European teams fielded a handful of players who were either born in Africa or had at least part African ancestry. France had 17 players of that description in its 26-man squad, Germany 9, England 10, and Belgium and Netherlands 8 each. Even Nordic countries Norway and Sweden have woken up to the tactic of importing such players.

Fifth, this import of African players contrasts with the anti-immigration feeling sweeping these countries. Nothing brought out this irony more than the case of Folarin Balogun, whose red card was rescinded by FIFA under pressure from President Donald Trump.

Balogun has French-Algerian parentage and became eligible to play for America only because he was born in New York after his pregnant mother was refused a seat on a flight out of the country. This import of talent from post-colonial countries while subjecting immigrants to racial prejudice in America completes the irony of World Cup 2026.