For much of this World Cup, France was perceived as the favorites. That is a difficult spot to be in, because there is almost no chance that you can exceed expectations or surprise people. All you can do is let down, disappoint. Really, there is no where to go but down.
So as a fan, I have never really been fond of one of the teams or players in sports being perceived as one of the big favorites. And it rarely works out well. As a Giants fan in the NFL, the only time that they truly were considered a favorite and won was way back in the 1986 season. They won the Super Bowl, and were immediately considered among the favorites for the next season, too. But that season was disastrous. The only other time that the G-Men were heavy favorites would be in 2008 when, again, they were defending champions. They raced off to an 11-1 start, and looked like they might be heading back to the Super Bowl. But then it all fell apart. Their wide receiver somehow shot himself in the leg, and they lost three of their final four regular season games. They still managed to be the number one seed in the NFC, but lost their one and only playoff game at home to the Eagles.
I was a fan of other teams that were favorites. The Devils were among the favorites throughout the late 1990's, after their surprise run to the Stanley Cup title in 1995. But they kept getting bounced early. They finally were not the number one sed in 2000, and they won it again. As favorites in 2001, they lost a tough seven game series to Colorado. Then in 2003, they won the Cup as favorites, but that only underscores how difficult it seems to be.
In tennis, I was always a fan of Andre Agassi. He was one of the favorites, but his spotty career had some real ups and downs. More often than not, especially early in his career, the weight of being one of the favorites proved too much pressure. Only towards the end of his career did it seem like he really began to meet the tremendous expectations which were placed on him.
Then we get to France. I remember a couple of early World Cup runs in the 1980's, when they began to be perceived as a serious contender. But the pressure was perhaps too much, as they failed to qualify for both the 1990 and 1994 World Cups. As hosts, they automatically qualified in 1998, but many people did not consider them to be among the favorites. They thrived, winning all seven of their games and stunning the defending champions, Brazil, in the final. But as favorites in 2002, they had what likely was the worst title defense in World Cup history, failing to produce a single goal or win. In 2010, they were again seen as a team to watch, but had arguably one of the worst World Cup showings of any side in history, complete with a rebellion amongst players, and grabbing headlines as the butt of international jokes. They won as one of the favorites in 2018 and almost won in 2022, losing a heartbreaker in the final to Argentina.
That brings us to this World Cup final. France ranked among the favorites in some other World Cup tournaments, but everyone seemed to be eying them this time around. Once again, the best they could do was meet expectations. They won all three of their round robin games, but it was what was expected. They then defeated Sweden, survived a tough and unfair Paraguay team, then beat Morocco in the quarterfinals. A solid showing to that point, winning all six of their World Cup games as they qualified for the semifinal.
Yet, it was all expected. Everyone simply assumed that this side was so good that none of this was exactly newsworthy. After all, they were expected to win, right?
Now came the semifinal against Spain in Dallas, Texas. To be fair, they also were among the favorites in this tournament, and had also played like it. Yet on some level, they were overlooked, as they came in underdogs against France.
You would never know it by actually watching the game, however. It was clear that Spain came in with purpose and focus. Entering this game, they had scored 11 goals and allowed only one, in their last game against Belgium. Their defense has been magnificent, and they were absolutely stifling against France. It was a wall of white jerseys every time that France got any opportunities. What normally would have been brilliant passes for beautiful scoring opportunities or even goals against earlier opponents just seemed a little off rhythm in this contest against Spain. They never seemed to get a very good look, and the brief opportunities which they did have seemed to get shut down in a hurry.
Meanwhile on the other end, France made some uncharacteristic mistakes, playing a bit clumsily and confused on defense, leading to both of the goals which Spain scored.
On the one hand, Spain played absolutely brilliantly. They had a great gameplan and basically executed it as close to perfection as possible. On the other hand, it was clear that France looked out of sync. Nothing was working as it had earlier in the tournament. They just seemed a little off whenever they had chances, but a little off meant no chances were converted to actual goals. And their sloppiness at times on defense proved costly. Again, they seemed just a little bit...well, off. Not themselves.
Before long, it was clear that they were frustrated. The later into the game it got, the more France appeared frustrated and lost, until...well, until the cause itself was lost. Until the game was lost.
Spain now advances to the World Cup Final. They await the winner of the England-Argentina Semifinal now to see who they will play on Sunday. The winner will become World Cup champions.
As for France, they will play in the third-place game in Miami on Saturday against the loser of the England-Argentina semifinal game.
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