In the year-end finale of 2022, we look back at the top 10 spotlight events that shook things up:
1. A legend reborn - Brazilian soccer god Pele (82) bids farewell to the world
The 82-year-old Brazilian soccer legend's real name isn't Pele; it's Edson Arantes do Nascimento, a tribute to the American inventor Thomas Edison, while "Pele" was a term of endearment given to him by his childhood friends. His real name was Edson, but it was mispronounced as Pele, a nickname that followed him throughout his life; Pele once revealed in an interview that he didn't like the nickname as a child, often arguing with his friends, "What a happy childhood I had! My name was Edson, but my friends called me Pele. I didn't like it, and I used to argue with them. I admired Edison, so what was Pele? It's Edison that counts."
Although Pele only played for Santos in Brazil and the New York Cosmos in the United States, and never stepped foot on a green field in Europe, he is known as the King of Balls as he became the only player in history to win the World Cup three times.
After his retirement, his controversial comments became legendary. Teams favored by him often ended up with mixed fortunes. Recently, there have been concerns about his health, with the media reporting that he is critically ill. However, during the World Cup in Qatar, he bolstered the morale of the Brazilian team through sheer force of will. However, on December 29, his agent confirmed that the legendary footballer passed away in a hospital in São Paulo due to organ failure caused by colon cancer. The sad news was also confirmed by his daughter, and Pele's parent team Santos announced that his wake would be held at the team's home stadium on Monday, with his body being transported from the hospital to the stadium and placed in the center of the field.
Many current stars took to social media to express their condolences for the ancient behemoth, with Brazilian star Neymar writing, "Before Pele, '10' was just a number, I've read sentences like this, beautiful but incomplete. Before Pele, soccer was just a sport, and he was the one who made it all change, turning it into art and entertainment. He gave a voice to the poor and the black, and more importantly, showed the world that Brazil, soccer and Brazil were transformed because of him, and although he is gone, the magic is still there, and Pele lives on."
Imagine that Brazilian king Pele and Argentine king Diego Maradona, who barely crossed paths during their lives, will finally meet in heaven, and maybe they will be teammates, or maybe they will be rivals...
2. Qatar World Cup - Messi leads Argentina to another title after 36 years, France breaks the curse, Asia and Afro-descendants on the rise
Every World Cup carries a script of stories from various countries. The end result seems to be more like the power of crowds winning out over the soccer gods.
Argentina has lost eight consecutive World Cups since Diego Maradona led the country to victory in 1986, putting Messi, who announced before this tournament that he would be playing for the last time, under enormous historical pressure.
Argentina suffered an unexpected 1-2 loss in their opening match against Saudi Arabia, but the loss seemed to be the catalyst that galvanized them, and they went on to win their subsequent two matches in a row to top the group and advance to the knockout rounds, where they showed great strength against Australia, the Netherlands, and Croatia to eventually meet defending champions France in the final.
The final saw Lionel Messi and Paris Saint-Germain teammate Kylian Mbappe team up for a classic duel. Argentina built a 2-0 lead in the first half thanks to Messi and Angelo Di Maria, but didn't expect to see Mbappe equalize in the 80th minute thanks to a penalty and athletic play in just two minutes. Messi scored again in extra time and Mbappe then equalized again on a penalty as well.
In the penalty shootout, both stars managed to score, basically both sides were evenly matched and the rest was up to their teammates. Emiliano Martinez once again showed his ability to save, leading Argentina to the final victory, which was their second World Cup trophy after 36 years.
Messi not only lifted the Copa Libertadores, but also won the Golden Ball, the tournament's best player, and was honored by the host country's monarchs as the Ballon d'Or.
Messi said, "For 30 years, soccer has given me a lot of joy and of course sadness. I've always had the dream of becoming world champion and don't want to stop trying, even though I'm aware of the possibility that it will never happen."
Although France failed to defend the title and could not break the curse of defending the title, at least they broke the self-created "European countries win the World Cup, the next group exit" curse.
Croatia, on the other hand, showed the last of its class, with Luka Modric and the Golden Generation winning the bronze medal in a remarkable achievement.
Morocco, who were crushed by Spain and Portugal in the last group stage, this time blew away the competition in Group F, claiming the top spot in the group, beating the Iberian double-teeth in consecutive matches, and creating Africa's best record with the hall of fame, despite ultimately falling short to France and second-placed Group F side Croatia.
