MOSCOW (AP) – The Latest on Sunday at the World Cup (all times local): 11 p.m. In a World Cup final stadium packed with presidents,…
MOSCOW (AP) – The Latest on Sunday at the World Cup (all times local):
11 p.m.
In a World Cup final stadium packed with presidents, none had more fun than Emmanuel Macron.
The French president joined the victorious Les Bleus in their Luzhniki Stadium locker room, gave a speech, had fun with star midfielder Paul Pogba while being filmed for Snapchat, and struck a dab pose for defender Benjamin Mendy.
It was a rousing evening for the president who went through a range of emotions during France’s 4-2 victory over Croatia.
Earlier, Macron paced nervously and leaped euphorically from his seat in the VIP section as a guest of FIFA and Russian President Vladimir Putin to see Les Bleus play for soccer’s biggest prize.
After the game, Macron offered up a flurry of kisses in the exuberant and then rain-soaked celebrations.
He gave Croatia’s President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic consoling kisses on both cheeks after the final whistle. He kissed French goal scorers Kylian Mbappe and Antoine Griezmann on their foreheads at the trophy and medal ceremony on the field.
He even kissed the golden top of the World Cup trophy before it was presented to France captain Hugo Lloris.
On his official Twitter account later, Macron posted a simple message to the team: “MERCI.”
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10:25 p.m.
France’s jubilant players have crashed their coach’s post-match news conference, dancing and singing while spraying both champagne and water.
France coach Didier Deschamps, only the third man to win a World Cup as a player and a coach, was speaking to the media after his team’s 4-2 victory over Croatia. But he was briefly interrupted by a group of players, some still in uniform, some bare chested and some wearing their winners’ medal around their necks.
A couple of players even stood on the news conference table and danced as Deschamps shared hugs with some others.
Deschamps says “Sorry! They’re young and they’re happy.”
The victory at Luzhniki Stadium clinched a second World Cup title for France. Deschamps was the captain of the team that won the title at home in 1998.
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9:45 p.m.
Croatia’s Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic says the national team players are “the first in the world for me” despite their 4-2 loss to France in the World Cup final.
Plenkovic tells the state broadcaster the Croatia players “were great!”
He adds that “France was lucky in the first half… it could have gone the other way.”
“People are happy as if we have won and that’s the way it should be,” Plenkovic says. “This is a miraculous
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9:30 p.m.
President Donald Trump has congratulated France on winning its second World Cup title.
Trump says in a tweet that France “played extraordinary soccer.” The French team beat Croatia 4-2 in a final that was watched worldwide.
Trump offered his congratulations as he flew from Scotland to Finland for a summit Monday with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki. There was no immediate word from the White House on whether Trump watched any part of the match during the approximately three-hour flight.
The World Cup final also gave Trump an opportunity to congratulate tournament hosts Putin and Russia “for putting on a truly great World Cup Tournament – one of the best ever!”
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9 p.m.
The great Pele has acknowledged Kylian Mbappe’s remarkable tournament that culminated with the France forward becoming just the second teenager to score in a World Cup final. No guessing who is first. Pele was 17 when he scored twice Brazil’s 5-2 win over Sweden in the 1958 final.
Mbappe scored France’s fourth goal in the 4-2 win over Croatia in Moscow and was voted young player of the tournament.
Pele posted a message of congratulations on his Twitter account saying “Only the second teenager to have scored a goal in a (hashtag) WorldCupFinal! Welcome to the club, @Mbappe – it’s great to have some company! “
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8:55 p.m.
From Napoleon’s triumphal arch to hard-scrabble suburbs of Paris, France is exploding with joy after its national soccer team won the World Cup.
Crowds packed the lawns stretching out beneath the Eiffel Tower, frenetically waving French flags as police struggled to keep them squeezed in place.
On the other side of the Seine River, more throngs poured onto streets around the Champs-Elysees and the Arc de Triomphe, where soldiers and military equipment paraded a day before on France’s national Bastille Day holiday.
Car honking rang out after France beat Croatia 4-2 in Moscow for its second-ever World Cup victory.
Twitter posts showed ethnically diverse crowds decked in the French tricolor dancing and shouting in the Paris suburb of Bondy, hometown of 19-year-old World Cup breakout star Kylian Mbappe.
Authorities deployed extra security forces to keep order around France.
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8:45 p.m.
The highest-scoring World Cup final since 1966 lifted the 2018 tournament to within two goals of the record tally for a 32-team format.
France’s 4-2 win over Croatia increased the tournament tally to 169 goals – two fewer than the record 171 in the 2014 and 1998 editions.
The average goals per game in Russia was 2.64.
It was the most prolific final since England beat West Germany 4-2 after extra time in 1966.
Goals finally returned to the World Cup final in regulation time. The two previous finals were 0-0 after 90 minutes before being settled with a single goal deep into extra time.
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8:35 p.m.
Croatia midfielder Luka Modric has been awarded the Golden Ball after being voted as the best player at the World Cup.
Modric, who scored two goals and was crucial to Croatia’s three come-from-behind wins in the knockout stages, embraced Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic after being given the award in a rainy ceremony after his team lost the final 4-2 to France.
England’s Harry Kane won the Golden Boot for top scorer with six goals. Of those, three were penalties and two came shortly after corner kicks.
France teenager Kylian Mbappe was voted young player of the tournament, while Belgium’s Thibaut Courtois was named best goalkeeper. Belgium finished as the World Cup’s highest-scoring team with 16 goals from 10 different players.
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8:33 p.m.
The French players have received their winners’ medals and danced in the rain with the World Cup after beating Croatia in the final in Moscow.
The players, some with the national flag draped over their heads or shoulders and others with the tricolor wrapped around their waists, shook hands with Russian President Vladimir Putin, their own president Emmanuel Macron and Croatian leader Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic during a heavy downpour at Luzhniki Stadium.
The presidents of France and Croatia, who were saturated on the podium, pretended to grab the World Cup trophy from FIFA President Gianni Infantino before he handed it to the players. As soon as he did, the fireworks started golden glitter exploded all over the players.
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8:15 p.m.
A leader accused of genocide by the International Criminal Court has been entertained at the World Cup final.
Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir was among the heads of state in the luxury seating at the Luzhniki Stadium to see France play Croatia.
Al-Bashir is accused by the ICC of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur during fighting since 2003.
World soccer’s governing body declined to comment on how Al-Bashir’s presence in a section with FIFA President Gianni Infantino complies with FIFA’s human rights policy.
Fatma Samoura joined FIFA as secretary general in 2016 after serving as a U. N. official in Africa.
The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court accused the U. N. Security Council last month of failing to take action against countries that didn’t arrest Al-Bashir. Russian President Vladimir Putin was also at the match in Moscow.
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8:10 p.m.
Euphoria has given way to a mixture of disappointment and pride for Croatia fans after the national team lost to France in its first ever World Cup final.
The entry into the World Cup final in Russia has brought the country of 4 million people to a standstill as officials and the media described the event as the biggest in Croatia’s sports history.
Fans in the capital Zagreb crammed into squares and streets and were full of hope and cheering until the last moment. As the game ended 4-2, they couldn’t hide sadness but many said they were happy at what Croatia has achieved.
Aleksandar Todorovic says “Of course I am sad. I could see them lift the trophy, but this is really fantastic.”
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8 p.m.
France coach Didier Deschamps has been thrown into the air in a celebration by his players after becoming just the third person to win the World Cup as a player and as a coach.
Deschamps was captain of the France squad that won the World Cup on home soil in 1998.
With France’s 4-2 win over Croatia in the final in Moscow, he joins Franz Beckenbauer (Germany) and Mario Zagallo (Brazil) in an elite trio that has won the title on the field and from the bench.
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7:54 p.m.
France has clinched its second World Cup title with a 4-2 win over Croatia in a dramatic final in Moscow featuring a series of firsts and a pitch invasion orchestrated by Russian protest group Pussy Riot.
France led 2-1 at halftime courtesy of the first own-goal and the first video-reviewed penalty in a World Cup final. The own-goal off the top of Mario Mandzukic’s head was the 12th of the tournament. That’s double the previous World Cup record of six.
Croatia rallied to equalize on a terrific left-foot strike by Ivan Perisic, but France took the lead right back when Perisic handled the ball in the area. Argentine referee Nestor Pitana initially didn’t call the handball but awarded the spot kick after a video review. Antoine Griezmann converted the penalty to put France back in front.
Four pitch invaders disrupted the game in the 52nd minute for about a minute before being dragged away by security and police. Punk rock group Pussy Riot quickly claimed responsibility for the pitch invasion via social media, saying it was a protest aimed at ending illegal arrests of protesters and to allow political competition in Russia.
Play resumed and France quickly took a 4-1 lead with goals from Paul Pogba and Kylian Mbappe in the 59th and 65th minutes before Mario Mandzukic pulled one back for the Croatians in the 69th.
Croatia was playing in its first World Cup final. For France, it was a first World Cup crown since winning on home soil in 1998.
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7:29 p.m.
France has a 4-2 lead over Croatia after 70 minutes of a World Cup final that has featured a series of firsts including an own goal and a penalty awarded after a video review. And a pitch invasion for which the Russian punk rock group Pussy Riot has claimed responsibility.
France led 2-1 at half time and extended the lead to 4-1 with goals from Paul Pogba and Kylian Mbappe in the 59th and 65th minutes before Mario Mandzukic pulled one back for the Croatians in the 69th.
France is aiming for its second World Cup title. Croatia is playing in the World Cup final for the first time.
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7:22 p.m.
Pussy Riot has claimed responsibility for the four pitch invaders who disrupted the World Cup final between France and Croatia in Moscow. Just after Croatia goalkeeper saved Kylian Mlbappe in the 52nd minute, four people emerged from the other end of the field. One made it to the center circle. They were quickly tackled by security, and the match resumed after a delay of about one minute.
The balaclava-clad women of Pussy Riot, a Russian punk rock group, rose to global prominence with their daring outdoor performances critical of Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2012 that sent two members to prison for nearly two years.
The band says in a statement posted on their Twitter feed that the disruption was a protest.
Before being hauled away, one woman managed to reach the center of the field and share a double high-five with France forward Kylian Mbappe, who had a shot saved a minute earlier.
“Hello everyone from the Luzhniki field, it’s great here,” the group said on Twitter, and released a statement calling for the freeing of political prisoners, an end to “illegal arrests” of protesters and to “allow political competition” in Russia.
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7:18 p.m.
Paul Pogba has given France a 3-1 lead over Croatia in the World Cup final with a goal in the 59th minute.
Pogba made a lengthy diagonal, cross-field pass to Mbappe, who sped up the right flank. He dribbled around Strinic and crossed to Griezmann, who took two touches and cut the ball back to Pogba at the penalty arc. Pogba’s initial shot was blocked by Lovren, and Pogba sent in the rebound for his first goal of the tournament.
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7:12 p.m.
Four people dressed in suits have invaded the pitch during the second half of the World Cup final.
The four, who seemed to be wearing peaked caps, approached players and one appeared to share a high five with a France player.
Stewards dragged the people off the field after a total disruption of almost a minute while France was leading 2-1.
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7 p.m.
Records are falling like the rain coming down on the field after a wild first half of the World Cup final in Moscow.
France has a 2-1 lead over Croatia courtesy of the first own-goal and the first video-reviewed penalty in a World Cup final. The own-goal off the top of Mario Mandzukic’s head was the 12th of the tournament. That’s double the previous World Cup record of six.
Croatia rallied to equalize on a terrific left-foot strike by Ivan Perisic, but France took the lead right back when Perisic handled the ball in the area.
