The Cup Runneth Over

The French won, so did the Russians. But, more importantly, football won.

- Reuben Joe Joseph/ Moscow

ON THE DAY of the World Cup final, Russian President Vladimir Putin was beaming throughout. This World Cup was everything he wanted it to be. Entertainment? Check. Break the myths about Russian society? Check. Establish himself as a propagator of soft power? You bet. By the end of the tournament, everybody who had visited Russia was in love with the country. The stereotypical Russian bogeyman turned out to be quite the warm host after all.

And, what of the football? The consensus among journalists was that this was the best edition ever. Not just in terms of organisation, but also in terms of the quality of play and the excitement it brought even to the seasoned reporter.

In many ways, Russia 2018 was supposed to be like Argentina 1978. The Cup had taken place two years after a military coup in the South American country, and politics had heavily affected the tournament, taking the focus away from the pitch. Reporters used it as an opportunity to show the world the hidden, ugly side of the Argentine dictatorship. Mercifully, the tournament in Russia was only about football.

The hooligans and the racists were missing, the action on the pitch was insulated from political tension, the local people turned out to be a content lot and the host team made it to the quarterfinals. The only major controversies revolved around the video assistant referee.