Spain v Argentina: The facts & scandals behind the World Cup final

**Chris Spyrou** (0:07)
After 102 games, 297 goals and thousands of minutes played, the World Cup is coming to an end on Monday morning very sadly. Spain are taking on Argentina in New Jersey, and it's expected some 1.5 billion people will tune in for the final. Now, it's been a roller coaster of a month and a half for football fans around the globe, especially for us here in Australia with the early morning wake ups and that all too familiar fight to stay awake during the day. Our boys though, the Socceroos, they of course made it past the group stages, but crushed out in a heartbreaking penalty shootout against Egypt in the knockouts, and from there a lot of us had to find new horses to back. Mine was Norway.
They got knocked out on the weekend. I then found my new spiritual home in Argentina, and to my relief, they went through after a 2-1 win in their semi-final against England on Thursday. Anywho, this is not about me. This is all about tomorrow's final and everything you need to know ahead of it, the analysis, what's really on the line, and even the conspiracy theories. So you don't sound like you're out of the loop when someone brings it up, and here to help us through it all is our go-to football fanatic, Ed Cavali from SBS nightly World Cup show, Santo and Ed's Cup Fever. And just a note before we do get into this chat, we did record this in the hours after Argentina beat England, hence why Ed is referring to Thursday as today. All righty, let's get into the chat.
Ed Cavali, welcome back to The Briefing. I want to start this interview by revisiting our last interview, and something that you said, I'm actually going to play it for you.

**Ed Kavalee** (1:50)
We're all waiting for that wonderful day. Chris, you and I, everyone listening to this, we're all waiting for the best day of the World Cup, which of course is when England gets knocked out.

**Chris Spyrou** (2:00)
Ed, that day arrived. Thoughts, feelings, reactions.

**Ed Kavalee** (2:03)
Oh, it's the most wonderful time of the year. And it couldn't have happened in a better way. Basically, the context of this match is as follows. Lionel Messi today was being marked by a guy called Elliot Anderson, who is the most expensive English footballer in history, which is a direct result of the Premier League being what the Premier League is, the most dominant league in the world. And also the idea that Manchester City, with their not questionable at all ownership, can now shell out any bit of money they want to get the best players to go to their club.
Versus Lionel Messi, 39 years young. So the basic premise of this match to give it into a football context is, is the idea that as a nation, you will die out there, and that you will die for Lionel Messi as an Argentinian player. Sergio Romero said, I will leave my soul on the pitch for us to win this match. Is that idea still more powerful than all the money in the world, and all the Premier League in the world? And thankfully, at this point, the answer is still yes.
That is why this game mattered today.

**Chris Spyrou** (3:10)
So to summarise, Ed, you're feeling good.

**Ed Kavalee** (3:12)
Well, I feel...
You know what it is, Chris?
It's more... yes, I am. But it's more that we still have something in football that is not just who has the most money wins. Now, of course, the irony of that is that's exactly what we're doing. Because FIFA ultimately decides who is in the games and who is in the finals and where the games are. And their attitude is absolutely whoever gets the most money wins. But in a microcosm and in Lionel Messi and in this Argentinian team, we are still seeing that the pushback of those forces is, do you have 11 people who are willing to leave their souls out there? That is still why emotionally the game is still tangible. Now, what you're going to see, Chris, is a photograph that's doing the rounds, which is of course of Lionel Messi bathing Laminia Mal, the best player in the Spanish team, the best attacker in the Spanish team, when he was a baby as part of a charity initiative. Now, that player, Laminia Mal, is now playing in Lionel Messi's old position at Barcelona, and he is the heir apparent to this. And is Lionel Messi, for him, think about that, Chris. He actually bathed this baby, who he is now up against in a World Cup final. That's how long he's been doing this. That's how long he has been the best at this. And so, that is why this final is so interesting, because we move on now, we've got rid of the English, and good luck to them, and no, not good luck to them, get lost. So now we move on to this final, which is gonna tell us, Chris, where is football at?