The World Cup is over: which memes will fans remember most?

The final whistle has blown, Spain are celebrating their victory, and the internet is already summing up the World Cup. While football experts discuss tactics and statistics, social media users have chosen the tournament’s main heroes — not only footballers, but also random shots, comical moments and old photographs that unexpectedly received a second life.

Haaland lookalike becomes an internet star

One of the tournament’s most viral moments was a video of Russian model Anastasia Kostromina, whom users unexpectedly compared to Norwegian striker Erling Haaland. The clip quickly spread across social media, gathering around 132 million views. After that, the internet was flooded with dozens of jokes, photo edits and videos calling the woman “the real Haaland”.

Final pitch turned into a souvenir

The tournament organisers also came up with an unusual way to make money. FIFA plans to sell fragments of the pitch on which the final was played. Each piece will be presented as a collectible souvenir, with a starting price of $450 (around 35,000 roubles). The idea immediately sparked heated debate: some called it a great gift for collectors, while others considered it an overly expensive way to preserve memories of the tournament.

“Drake curse” proves stronger once again

The famous “Drake curse” was also part of the story. For several years, fans have joked that teams and athletes backed by the Canadian rapper almost inevitably suffer defeat. This time, the musician bet $1.5 million on Argentina winning the final, but the trophy went to Spain. After the match, social media instantly revived the old superstition, which users believed had been confirmed once again.

Photograph becomes a symbol of the final

One of the most touching moments off the pitch was an old photograph taken almost two decades ago. It shows a young Lionel Messi bathing a little Lamine Yamal during a charity photo shoot. After Spain and Argentina reached the final, users recalled the image once again, turning it into a symbol of the passing of the football baton. On the internet, Messi was immediately dubbed the “sensei”, while Yamal became the “student” who would one day face his mentor.

Spain goalkeeper becomes the hero of jokes

The goalkeeper of the Spanish national team did not escape attention either. Because most of the final was played far from his goal, users began posting memes suggesting that the goalkeeper had managed to sleep, watch television, drink coffee and even smoke a hookah during the match. The jokes quickly spread across social media and became some of the most popular memes of the final day.

The World Cup will be remembered for a long time not only because of the beautiful goals and thrilling matches, but also because of internet culture, which once again turned a football tournament into a true festival of memes. Some of these jokes have already become part of world football history and will surely resurface online for many years to come.