FIFA WC Final Is Football's Biggest Celebration, Brings Nations Together: Shaji Prabhakaran

FIFA WC final is footballs biggest celebration, brings nations together: Shaji Prabhakaran (Image Source: IANS)

All India Football Federation: The 2026 FIFA World Cup final between Spain and Argentina is much more than a contest to crown the world's best football team, according to the former general secretary of the All India Football Federation (AIFF), who believes the summit clash represents the sport's unparalleled ability to unite people, cultures and nations while creating an impact that extends far beyond the field.

Speaking exclusively to IANS ahead of the FIFA WC showdown, Prabhakaran said the tournament has once again demonstrated why football remains the world's most influential sport, with the expanded 48-team format delivering high-quality competition and unprecedented global reach.

Calling the final the pinnacle of the sport, Prabhakaran said football's greatest strength lies in its ability to connect people across geographical and cultural boundaries and described the FIFA World Cup final as a global celebration that transcends the game itself.

"This World Cup so far has been remarkable in terms of what we could witness with the expansion of 48 teams and the way the competition went, and there were real top-class performances, and the final between Spain and Argentina is huge.

"Football brings people together and nations together and where it is the biggest celebration and it is where the biggest assembly of culture happens and that way not only the economic benefit, sporting benefit, social benefit, it is the impact what it makes globally to the people, not only limited to those who are hardcore fans but those who are normal citizens as well because sport, particularly football, has the biggest reach,” Prabhakaran told IANS.

Prabhakaran also highlighted the tournament's economic footprint, saying the World Cup has generated enormous value for the host nation and beyond.

"Economically, it is a huge success, and there is a report in the US that it has contributed 20 billion within the US economy; that's huge, and 20 billion outside the US, there is more than 40 billion impact of this World Cup globally, that's huge,” he added.

Beyond the financial returns, he said football plays a much larger humanitarian role by inspiring hope and uplifting communities around the world, stating, "And then this value what football brings to the world, it also helps humanitarianly in many ways, and it also lifts the spirits of people who are kind of suffering because that gives a lot of joy and satisfaction in the life and then they try to look for hope and football gives them that hope."

"Economically, it is a huge success, and there is a report in the US that it has contributed 20 billion within the US economy; that's huge, and 20 billion outside the US, there is more than 40 billion impact of this World Cup globally, that's huge,” he added.

"Tomorrow when the final will be, it will be watched by 2 billion people; that is huge, humongous, and that's what football does to the world."

Article Source: IANS