Pelé, Ronaldo, Neymar among others congratulate Argentina as they lift the trophy
Celebrities and world leaders are lighting up social media with comments about Argentina's thrilling victory over France in the 2022 World Cup on Sunday.
Brazil great Pelé congratulated Lionel Messi and Argentina for winning the World Cup and Kylian Mbappé for his goal-scoring exploits in Sunday's final.
Pelé, who won a record three World Cups as a player, has been in the hospital to treat a respiratory infection.
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He posted his message on Instagram after Argentina beat defending champion France 4-2 in a penalty shootout following a 3-3 draw at Lusail Stadium in Qatar.
"Today, football continues to tell its story, as always, in an enthralling way," Pelé wrote in his post. "Messi winning his first World Cup, as his trajectory deserved. My dear friend, Mbappé, scoring four goals in a final. What a gift it was to watch this spectacle to the future of our sport."
Pelé also took time to mention Morocco for its history-making run as the first African team to reach the semifinals at the tournament.
"And I couldn't fail to congratulate Morocco for the incredible campaign," Pelé wrote. "It's great to see Africa shine."
Pelé ended his message by again lauding Argentina and mentioning the man most often associated with him as the greatest players the game has ever seen — Diego Maradona.
Maradona, who led Argentina to the 1986 World Cup title, died in 2020.
"Congratulations Argentina!" Pelé wrote. "Certainly Diego is smiling
Legendary Brazil striker Ronaldo has hailed Lionel Messi after captaining Argentina to World Cup glory, saying the veteran's brilliance puts any rivalries aside.
The 46-year-old wrote on Twitter: 'This guy's football throws any rivalry to the corner.
'I saw a lot of Brazilians – and people from all over the world – rooting for Messi in this electrifying final. A farewell worthy of the genius who, far beyond being a World Cup star, captained an era. Congratulations Messi!'
Neymar has taken to social media to congratulate Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) teammate Lionel Messi after he led Argentina to FIFA World Cup glory in Qatar. He wrote:
"Congrats Brother."
Bangladeshi women footballers celebrating Argentina's World Cup Victory.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also congratulated Argentina on its World Cup triumph.
"I sincerely congratulate Argentina and all Argentines, who became the 2022 FIFA World Cup Champions after one of the most closely contested final matches in history," Erdogan said on Twitter after Argentina beat France 4-2 on penalties in a thrilling game.
He also posted the message in Spanish.
Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi was seen taking to Twitter where he congratulated Alberto Fernández's Argentina while he also commiserated with France who ended as second best.
Former USA president Barak Obama also congratulates Argentina for their historic win.
After Argentina lifted the FIFA World Cup, Shah Rukh Khan took to Twitter to praise Messi and called it one of the best World Cup Final ever. "We are living in the time of one of the best World Cup Finals ever. I remember watching WC with my mom on a small tv….now the same excitement with my kids!! And thank u #Messi for making us all believe in talent, hard work & dreams (sic)," he wrote.
The nail biting FIFA finals left Ranveer Singh amazed. "What have I just witnessed ?!?! Historic. Iconic. Pure magic. #FIFAWorldCup (sic)," he wrote on Twitter.
Meanwhile, just like everyone, all cricketers across the world were also glued to their TV sets as they watched Messi kissing that glorious World Cup trophy live on television. Messi had fallen short in 2014 when Argentina were beaten by a ruthless Germany in Brazil. Meanwhile, a number of top Indian cricketers like Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag wished the 'Greatest of All Time' on this wonderful achievement. Cricketers like Bangladesh's Mushfiqur Rahim, Afghanistan's Mohammed Nabi also joined in on social media; here are some of the top reactions.
Messi scored two goals in the match and finally won the lone trophy that had eluded him in his remarkable career. Mbappé, who scored in the 2018 title match when he was a teenager just as Pelé did in 1958, became only the second player in history to score a hat trick in the World Cup final.
Both Messi and Mbappé also scored in the penalty shootout.
Messi ended up winning the Golden Ball award as the best player of the tournament and Mbappé won the Golden Boot award as the top scorer with eight goals in seven matches.now."
