France beat Croatia 4-2 in the World Cup final. It was an exciting end to a great tournament. France also won it in 1998. The French coach became the third man to win as a player and coach. The final had good football, controversial refereeing decisions, an own goal, a pitch invasion, and a big goalkeeping mistake. Billions of people watched on TV. France's talented team included the next world star - the speedy 19-year-old forward Kylian Mbappe.
Croatia were best early on and looked like scoring first. However, a French free kick after 18 minutes was deflected in for an own goal by a Croatia forward. Croatia levelled 10 minutes later with a shot from Ivan Perisic. France restored its lead after the referee reviewed video evidence of a handball and scored a penalty. Two goals in six minutes extended France's lead. A mistake from France's goalkeeper gave Croatia a goal, but France held on to win.