Spain sweep the individual awards after conceding one goal all tournament; only the Golden Boot got away, to Mbappe

Three of four stayed with Spain

Moments after Spain beat Argentina 1-0 to win the final, the award ceremony at MetLife Stadium handed three of the four individual prizes to Spanish players. Rodri took the Golden Ball as the tournament's best player, Unai Simon the Golden Glove as its best goalkeeper, and Pau Cubarsi the Best Young Player award. The one prize that got away was the Golden Boot, which left with Kylian Mbappe of France, a side that lost the third-place match and finished fourth.

Rodri wins the Golden Ball; Messi takes silver

The best-player award went to the midfielder Rodri. Lionel Messi took the Silver Ball in second, with Mbappe third for the Bronze Ball. For Messi, in what is likely his last World Cup, the tournament ended without either the title or the top individual honour. Rodri controlled the tempo throughout and was judged the man who built Spain's second world title, sixteen years after their first in 2010 — a contribution that rarely shows up in a goal tally.

One goal conceded in seven games

The numbers that best describe this Spain side are defensive ones. Unai Simon, named best goalkeeper, kept five clean sheets across the tournament. As a team, Spain won the title having conceded just a single goal in all seven matches. The final itself finished 1-0 after extra time, with the 90 minutes goalless. This was a title built less on overwhelming attack than on simply not conceding.

The young-player award went to Cubarsi, not Yamal

The Best Young Player award went to 19-year-old Pau Cubarsi — not to his equally young and far more hyped teammate Lamine Yamal, but to the defender who anchored the back line that allowed that lone goal. The choice mirrors how Spain actually won: through a defence that did not break rather than an attack that dazzled.

The one award Spain did not take

The Golden Boot went to France's Mbappe, who finished on 10 goals for a second straight top-scorer award, two clear of Messi's eight. Yet Mbappe's team lost the third-place playoff to England 4-6 and ended the tournament in fourth — the individual scoring crown at the top, the team off the podium. His 10 goals are the first haul above eight at a single men's World Cup since Gerd Muller in 1970, and several outlets report he has now passed Messi by one to stand alone as the all-time leading scorer in World Cup history with 22.

Whether Messi will continue with the national team, or whether this final was truly his last game, has not been stated by the player himself.