Soccer-Whatever the ending, Qatar World Cup duly delivered

FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - 2022 World Cup Preview - Doha, Qatar - November 10, 2022 A Qatar 2022 logo is seen in front of the skyline of the West Bay in Doha REUTERS/John Sibley/File Photo

(Reuters) - A World Cup that has defied all expectations reaches its climax on Sunday when Lionel Messi could join Diego Maradona in Argentine immortality by taking the south Americans to the title or France could become the first nation to retain it since 1962.

Both scenarios would be an appropriate final act to the first World Cup staged in an Arab country.