MIAMI – On FIFA World Cup final day in Lusail, Qatar, there could have been a wedding with a conflict in South Florida, but the bride from France and the groom from Argentina decided to celebrate the game instead.
It was a compromise Barbara Chayo, of Marseille, and Kevin Abadi, of Buenos Aires, had to make. They had already named their dog “Messi,” after Argentina’s Lionel Messi, who scored his final World Cup goal and took his team to victory.
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Knowing that there was a possibility that their teams would end up in the final, and emotions would run high, Abadi asked Chayo to postpone their wedding. He gave her an ultimatum and Chayo agreed.
“I said, ‘Listen! You are going to be getting married alone; I’m going to be watching that game too,’” Abadi said before his team became the best 2022 soccer team in the world.
The game was a rollercoaster ride, but Abadi and Chayo were there to support each other.
During the first part of the game at Lusail Stadium, Argentina had a 2-0 lead against France. Messi scored with a penalty kick after a little over 20 minutes of the game. Angel Di Maria scored just about 10 minutes later.
After the 80th minute on the field, France’s Kylian Mbappé tied the game with two goals within just two minutes. But in the 108th minute of the game, Argentina scored. Minutes later, France tied the game 3-3.
After a 120-minute battle, the game went to a penalty shootout and Argentina beat France 4-2.
The couple who introduced Chayo and Abadi — Nathan Peres from Argentina and Melanie Arougueti from France — was also surprised about the turn of fate. They knew with certainty that no matter which team won, the victory was in the family.
The U.S., Canada, and Mexico will be hosting the 2026 World Cup and Miami is among the host cities.
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