For all the talk of price gouging, seeding controversies, and a clumsy intervention from the US government, the FIFA World Cup 2026 has been, well, a triumph. I don’t remember the last time I found myself so engulfed in an international football tournament quite like this one.
The stadiums are world-class, the fans have been tribal and immense (and famously getting along), and the football – the actual product – has been among some of the best I’ve seen in a long time, with worldies, lung-busting runs, tackles, and even some upsets that saw the competition’s favourites bow out early.
But amongst the football, this World Cup has benefitted from an increasingly connected world, in which the traditional broadcast channels of the most-watched sporting event in the world represent just one part of the overall coverage.
And whilst I’ll remember this World Cup for Nestory Irankunda’s magic and Jude’s back-to-back braces, it’ll surely go down in history for the memes and internet moments that have come to define the action across the US, Canada, and Mexico. So here it is, the alternative list of the Best Moments from the World Cup 2026.
Mexico Coach’s Words Of Encouragement
Mexico manager Javier Aguirre went viral during the knockout clash with England, asking Jude Bellingham for his shirt one minute and screaming "Gordon! F–k you!" down the touchline the next. His immediate reaction to start cracking up himself only added to this unique moment. Gordon, for what it's worth, took it as a compliment. I think more managers should talk to their opposition like this.
One Very EXCITED Japanese Fan
Hirochika Nakakuki didn't let a total absence of English get in the way of delivering the realest post-match interview of the tournament. "I cannot speak English. But I am EXCITED!" – capitals very much implied by tone alone.
Scottish Fans Take Over Fenway
The Tartan Army beat Haiti, then did what any self-respecting football nation would do the next day: marched on bagpipes to a baseball game they didn't understand and took it over completely. By the seventh-inning stretch, the whole of Fenway was singing "Yes Sir, I Can Boogie." It was the liveliest atmosphere Fenway Park had ever seen.
Harry Kane Loses His Voice
Couldn't have a list without at least one England moment, and this is one, from England’s captain and talisman Harry Kane, had every England fan believing it was finally coming home.
Kane came off an all-timer of a win over Mexico with absolutely nothing left in the tank, both physically and vocally apparently, likely bellowing instructions for 90 minutes before joining in another rendition of Oasis’ Wonderwall at full-time. A goal, an assist, and a voice box left in Mexico City.
Alexi Lalas Learning British Slang
Fox's coverage was rolling along fine until Alexi Lalas, apropos of absolutely nothing, called James Corden a "full kit wanker" live on air and left Rebecca Lowe, Thierry Henry and Zlatan Ibrahimović stunned into silence. Henry’s face alone deserves its own mention. A rare correct use of British slang from an American.
Lamine Yamal Spots His Brother
Lamine Yamal's three-year-old brother Keyne has quietly had a better World Cup than most starting XIs, and the moment he caught himself on the big screen after Spain's win over Belgium and completely lost it might be the most wholesome thing to happen in Los Angeles all summer. Yamal cracking up on the pitch is the whole tournament in one clip.
Norway’s Rowing Celebration
Norway's fans have spent the entire tournament sitting down in perfect unison and rowing an imaginary Viking longship every single time their team won – stadiums, subway cars, Times Square, airport queues, you name it.
It followed them everywhere, got louder with every round, and even made it back home to 100,000 people rowing outside the Royal Palace in Oslo. Not bad for a country that hadn't qualified since 1998.
England Fan’s Norway Response
Naturally, England couldn't let Norway have the moment to themselves. English fans hit back before the quarter-final with their own terrace classic – "There'll be no f–king rowing in New York" – while the Ministry of Defence deployed the Army, Navy and RAF to sing Wonderwall as an official "countermeasure." This is genuinely how I'd like international diplomacy to work from now on.
Belgian Players Doing The Trump Dance
After Trump's phone call to Gianni Infantino got Folarin Balogun's red card suspension overturned, Belgium responded the only way they knew how: thumping the USA 4-1 and breaking into the Trump dance on the pitch, then again in the dressing room to YMCA.
Lionel Messi Masterclass
Pick your own, honestly – that's the problem with putting Messi in a list like this. The Algeria hat-trick, scored exactly 20 years to the day after his first World Cup goal, would be enough to make the list, or perhaps the extra-time assist against Switzerland that made him the competition's all-time leader.
At 39, Messi is reminding everyone why he’s the greatest to ever do it, and with Argentina lining up against England next in the semis, I’m just hoping he has a rare bad day… not likely.
South Korean Enjoying The Mexican Culture
A group of Korean fans was revelling in the good times ahead of their group stage defeat with Mexico, attempting to take a bottle of tequila into the stands. After they were rebuffed at the gate, they couldn’t exactly let it go to waste and cracked it open, inviting the nearest Mexican fans to help finish it.
After an opening round defeat to the hosts, the fans might have hoped they saved a drop.
Referee Felix Zwayer Muscle Cramps
Nothing says "the officials are human too" quite like the USA-Australia referee going down in stoppage time with a cramp in the Seattle heat, only for Folarin Balogun and Aiden O'Neill, two players from opposing teams, to jog over to help stretch him out. Not sure what the rulebook says on that one.
Jordan Henderson Breaking His Arm During Celebration
Henderson didn't play a single minute against Mexico. Somehow he still ended the night in hospital, having broken his forearm vaulting the advertising boards to celebrate with the England fans. A yellow card for dissent from the bench and a tournament-ending injury from the celebration; genuinely one of the best things to happen off the pitch this World Cup.
