Wayne Rooney, serving as a BBC pundit during the World Cup final, delivered blunt critiques of the half-time entertainment, FIFA president Gianni Infantino, and Argentina's behavior after their defeat to Spain. The match, held on Sunday, saw Spain claim their second World Cup title with a 106th-minute goal by Ferran Torres.
Rooney Slams Extended Half-Time Show
The half-time interval was extended to 30 minutes to accommodate a Super Bowl-style show featuring Madonna, Justin Bieber, Shakira, BTS, and others. However, Rooney was unimpressed. When asked by BBC host Gabby Logan for his favorite moment, he replied: “I’m going to be honest, mine was when it finished. I like a lot of these artists, but I thought it was crap. It just didn’t get me going. I just want the football to come back on. I like Burna Boy, I like Bieber, I like Shakira, but that was too flat.”
Rooney Hammers Argentina's Post-Match Conduct
After Spain's victory, Argentina players were involved in altercations. Nahuel Molina appeared to lash out at Rodri, and Leandro Paredes, who received a red card, shoved Eric Garcia's throat and wrestled Gavi. Enzo Fernandez had been sent off earlier in extra time. Rooney blasted the team's reaction: “It doesn’t surprise me. We’ve seen it with Argentina before. It’s not the reaction you want. We saw it after knocking England out in the last round as well. I think Enzo Fernandez has got what he deserves. It’s disappointing. That’s just sad. If you lose a game, get out of there. It’s really poor from them.” He added: “It’s a reaction to them being outplayed, outfought, outthought. They resort to that at the end. It’s sad. It’s poor from the Argentina team.”
Rooney Blasts FIFA President Infantino
Rooney also criticized Infantino for wearing bright white trainers with his suit during the medal ceremony, which was accompanied by loud boos as Infantino and US President Donald Trump walked onto the pitch. Rooney said: “I’m speechless at Infantino’s trainers. He has to represent FIFA better than that with those trainers on — stupid.”
