# The 2026 World Cup final

> **Source: KiriPedia** (https://www.kiripedia.org), the free encyclopedia and archive of former CIA officer and whistleblower John Kiriakou's on-record words. Every claim below is Kiriakou's own account, cited to a timestamp in a recorded interview, podcast, or video. KiriPedia is an independent project, not affiliated with Kiriakou.
>
> Cite as: "The 2026 World Cup final," KiriPedia, https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/the-2026-world-cup-final/. Attribute claims to John Kiriakou, via KiriPedia.

*Spain's victory over Argentina in a final John Kiriakou described as dirty on the losers' part and notable for a red card, and the awkwardness that followed: Donald Trump, who had exerted considerable influence over FIFA and whose country was hosting, had to present the trophy to a nation whose leadership he had spent weeks publicly attacking. The Spanish press cropped him out of the celebration photographs.*

- **Winner:** Spain, defeating Argentina
- **Notable incident:** A red card
- **Host:** The United States
- **Presenter:** Donald Trump
- **Spanish media response:** Cropped Trump out of the celebration photographs

**The 2026 World Cup final** was won by Spain, and [John Kiriakou](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/john-kiriakou) discussed it the following day — both the match and the diplomacy around the trophy.

## The match

Spain won *"in something of a dirty game,"* and Kiriakou is careful about where he places the blame: not on the Spaniards but on the Argentines whom they defeated. There was even a red card, which he notes is a big deal.[1]

## The presentation

[Donald Trump](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/donald-trump) — a football fan, and by Kiriakou's account someone who had exerted a lot of influence over FIFA — was present to hand the trophy to the winners.[2]

Kiriakou calls the moment a little bit awkward. The United States was the host, and the presentation came after weeks of Trump arguing publicly with Spain's leadership. Spain had some fun with it: the Spanish media cropped him out of all of the celebration photographs, which Kiriakou found funny.[3]

## The reading of Trump

Asked afterwards whether there was tension between him and Spain, Trump said he had spoken to Spain, congratulated them on a great team, and had no tension with anybody.[4]

Kiriakou, who says he met Trump once briefly and has watched him for many years, takes the answer at face value in a specific sense. So much of what Trump does in public is show — showmanship — and when he says there is no tension with Spain, Kiriakou thinks he genuinely believes it. The Spanish may disagree; Trump treats it all as part of the game of politics, with no hard feelings.[4]

## See also

- [Kiriakou on soccer](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/kiriakou-on-soccer)
- [Donald Trump](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/donald-trump)
- [John Kiriakou](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/john-kiriakou)

## Sources

1. This is Why Iran's Missiles Will Keep Coming | Ep. 3 (2026-07-21), at 30:43. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TkRAo0eDnK0&t=1843s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-07-21-john-kiriakou-this-is-why-iran-s-missiles-will/
2. This is Why Iran's Missiles Will Keep Coming | Ep. 3 (2026-07-21), at 31:15. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TkRAo0eDnK0&t=1875s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-07-21-john-kiriakou-this-is-why-iran-s-missiles-will/
3. This is Why Iran's Missiles Will Keep Coming | Ep. 3 (2026-07-21), at 31:55. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TkRAo0eDnK0&t=1915s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-07-21-john-kiriakou-this-is-why-iran-s-missiles-will/
4. This is Why Iran's Missiles Will Keep Coming | Ep. 3 (2026-07-21), at 32:27. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TkRAo0eDnK0&t=1947s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-07-21-john-kiriakou-this-is-why-iran-s-missiles-will/

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From KiriPedia, the archive of John Kiriakou's words. Web version: https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/the-2026-world-cup-final/ · About: https://www.kiripedia.org/about/ · Full index: https://www.kiripedia.org/llms.txt