What made the FIFA World Cup memorable Records and interesting facts 

The 23rd FIFA World Cup, held for the first time across three countries—the United States, Canada, and Mexico—was marked by a number of interesting facts and memorable events, which Caliber.Az presents to its readers.

1. A new World Cup record was set for both the number of matches played and the total number of goals scored. At the 2026 FIFA World Cup, teams scored 308 goals. The previous record was set at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, where 172 goals were scored in 64 matches. In terms of the average number of goals per match, the tournament in North America (2.96) also surpassed the World Cup in Qatar (2.69).

2. The 2026 FIFA World Cup was the first tournament to be held under the new 48-team format.

3. France international Kylian Mbappé became the first player to win the FIFA World Cup Golden Boot twice. While eight goals were enough to earn him the award in 2022, the French forward scored 10 goals this time. In addition, Mbappé became the all-time leading goalscorer in FIFA World Cup history, with 22 goals in 22 matches across three tournaments (he is also a 2018 FIFA World Cup champion).

4. Three players—Lionel Messi (Argentina), Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), and Guillermo Ochoa (Mexico)—became the only footballers to have taken part in six FIFA World Cups (2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022, and 2026). While Ochoa did not make an appearance in three of those tournaments despite being included in Mexico's squad, both Messi and Ronaldo played in all six editions.

5. Cristiano Ronaldo became the only player in history to score at six FIFA World Cups. He has netted 11 goals in 27 matches. Lionel Messi, who also featured in six World Cups and scored 21 goals—the second-highest tally in tournament history after Mbappé—failed to score at only one edition, in 2010. At the same time, the Argentine holds the record for the most FIFA World Cup appearances, having played 34 matches.

6. As many as six players aged over 40 featured at the FIFA World Cup: Edin Džeko (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Luka Modrić (Croatia), Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), Vozinha (Cape Verde), Guillermo Ochoa (Mexico), and Craig Gordon (Scotland). Gordon, born on December 31, 1982, was the oldest player at the tournament, although he did not make a single appearance.

7. For the first time in FIFA World Cup history, the reigning world champions and reigning European champions—Argentina and Spain—met in the final. Moreover, it was the first World Cup final contested by the top two teams in the FIFA World Ranking, with Argentina ranked first and Spain second. In addition, for the first time, the same player captained his national team to three FIFA World Cup finals. Lionel Messi wore the captain's armband for Argentina in the 2014, 2022, and 2026 finals.

8. Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez made 11 saves in the World Cup final against Spain. No goalkeeper had ever made that many saves in a FIFA World Cup final before.

9. Spain played eight matches at the tournament and conceded just one goal. The only player to find the net against them was Belgium's Charles De Ketelaere in the quarter-finals. Saudi Arabia, Uruguay, Austria, Portugal, France, and Argentina all failed to breach Luis de la Fuente's side. No previous FIFA World Cup winner had ever completed the tournament having conceded only a single goal.

10. At the age of 39, Lionel Messi became the all-time leading assist provider in FIFA World Cup history, registering 12 assists. He also became the oldest outfield player ever to appear in a FIFA World Cup final.

11. The oldest head coach at the tournament was 78-year-old Dutchman Dick Advocaat, who led Curaçao to its first-ever FIFA World Cup appearance. Incidentally, Curaçao (with a population of around 155,000 and an area of 444 km²) became the smallest country by both population and land area ever to have its national team compete in the FIFA World Cup finals. Previously, the record for the smallest land area belonged to Trinidad and Tobago (2006 FIFA World Cup), while Iceland (2018 FIFA World Cup) held the record for the smallest population.

12. The semi-final against Spain was Didier Deschamps' 26th FIFA World Cup match as a head coach. The Frenchman surpassed the record previously held by Helmut Schön, who managed West Germany from 1966 to 1978. Deschamps has been in charge of the France national team since 2012, leading them to the 2018 FIFA World Cup title as well as the finals in 2022 and 2026.

By Vugar Vugarli, exclusively for Caliber.Az