The FIFA World Cup 2018 in Russia is the 21st edition of the world's biggest football tournament and it promises to be an event to remember. It's the first time in history that the tournament has been hosted in Russia, and the country is pulling out all the stops to make it a memorable event that will be remembered for years to come. It was the most expensive World Cup with cost over $14.2 Billion at that time.
FIFA World Cup 2018 kicks off on June 14th with the opening match between Russia and Saudi Arabia and continues until the 15th of July when the final match will be held. 32 teams will be competing for the trophy, with the defending champions, Germany, looking to retain the title they won in Brazil in 2014.
32 teams is divided into 8 groups of 4 with each team playing the other three teams in their group. The top two teams in each group make it through to the knockout stage. Iceland and Panama made their first appearance in World Cup group stage. Group stages saw some surprising results. Defending champions Germany were knocked out in the group stages after losing to Mexico and South Korea.
Two best teams from each group progressing to Round of 16, which began on 30th June 2018. Uruguay, Sweden, Switzerland, Colombia, France, Russia, Brazil, Belgium, Argentina, Mexico, Croatia, England, Denmark, Japan, Spain and Portugal qualified stage. Round of 16 also saw major upset Hosts Russia defeated Spain by 4-3 on Penalty Kicks.
Quarter Final stage began on 6th July 2018. France defeated Uruguay 2-0. Belgium defeated Brazil 2-1. Croatia defeated Russia 4-3, on Penalty kicks. England defeated Sweden 2-0.
1st Semi Final was played on 10th July 2018 between France and Belgium, France defeated Belgium by 1-0. 2nd Semi Final was played on 11th July 2018 between Croatia & England, Croatia defeated England 2-1.
The Final match was held at the iconic Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, Russia on 15th July 2018. The match began at a frenetic pace, with France taking an early lead through a goal from own goal of Mario Mandzukic from Croatia in the 18th minute. Croatia scored a equalizer in 28th minute through goal from Ivan Prisic. France extended their lead shortly before the half-time interval when Antoine Griezmann converted a penalty kick in 38th minute. France scored 2 goals in span of 7 minutes by scoring goals from Pogba and Mbappe in 59th & 65th minute. Croatia looked to mount a comeback and pulled one back through Mandzukic in the 69th minute but French defence was too strong and giving a final score of 4–2 to France. France's win was their 2nd World Cup.