The 2026 World Cup final between Argentina and Spain left a curiosity that transcended what happened on the field. After the victory of La Roja, a children's book published days before the tournament began imagined a very similar outcome to what ultimately occurred.
It is The World's Game, a work written by Argentine author Yamile Saied Méndez and illustrated by Colombian Andrés Landazábal, which was published on June 2 by Random House Children's Books to accompany the World Cup organized by the United States, Mexico, and Canada.
The story revolves around the passion for soccer and its impact on families from different corners of the world. However, the aspect that caught the most attention appeared in the conclusion: the book proposes a final between Argentina and Spain, and ends with a victory for the European team.
Although the fictional score was 2-1 in 90 minutes and the real match ended 1-0 in extra time, the coincidence that surprised thousands of users was another. In the narrative, the decisive goal is scored by the player wearing Spain's number 7 jersey, the same number worn by Ferran Torres, the scorer of the goal that gave the title to the team led by Luis de la Fuente.
The book had been on sale long before the knockout phase matchups were determined, so there wasn't even certainty that both teams would meet in the final.
The striking similarity gained notoriety when a user shared pages of the work on TikTok. The video began to multiply after Argentina eliminated England and the decisive match against Spain was confirmed. After the final, the coincidences went viral again and turned The World's Game into one of the most talked-about stories surrounding the World Cup.
Beyond the differences between fiction and reality, the accuracy of the finalists and the detail of the goalscorer's number led many fans to label the book as an unexpected "premonition" of the World Cup final.
