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In a World Cup defined by unpredictability and shocking results, it seems appropriate that it will come to an end with a final that practically no one saw coming: France vs. Croatia.
In the United States, the match is scheduled to start Sunday at 11 a.m. ET and will be broadcast on both Fox (English broadcast) and Telemundo (Spanish broadcast). But if you don’t have cable or can’t get to a TV, you can still easily watch a live stream of the World Cup final (or DVR it) on your computer, phone or streaming device by signing up for one of the following cable-free, live-TV streaming services:
Fox (live in most markets) and Telemundo are both included in the “Fubo Premier” bundle, which will also have a stream of the Fox broadcast in 4K on compatible devices. You can sign up for a free 7-day trial right here, and you can then watch a live stream of the World Cup final on your computer via the FuboTV website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the FuboTV app.
If you can’t watch the game live, FuboTV comes with 30 hours of Cloud DVR (with the ability to upgrade to 500 hours), as well as a “72-Hour Lookback” feature, which allows you to watch the game on-demand up to three days after it airs even if you forgot to record it.
In addition to a Netflix-like on-demand streaming library, Hulu also offers a bundle of live TV channels, including both Fox (live in most markets) and Telemundo. You can sign up for “Hulu with Live TV” right here, and you can then watch a live stream of the World Cup final on your computer via the Hulu website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the Hulu app.
If you can’t watch the game live, “Hulu with Live TV” also comes with 50 hours of Cloud DVR storage (with the ability to upgrade to “Enhanced Cloud DVR,” which gives you 200 hours of DVR space and the ability to fast forward through commercials), allowing you to watch the game after it airs.
Fox (but not Telemundo) is included in the “Sling Blue” package. You can sign up for a free 7-day trial right here, and you can then watch a live stream of the World Cup final on your computer via the Sling TV website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the Sling TV app.
If you can’t watch the match live, you can get 50 hours of cloud DVR storage as an additional add-on.
Preview
Eight years ago, France were in shambles without any real clear direction after embarrassingly tallying just one point during the World Cup group stage in South Africa. Eight years ago, Croatia weren’t even in the World Cup, having finished third in their qualification group behind England and Ukraine.
Now, they’ll battle it out for the greatest achievement in international football.
While both teams are a testament to how quickly things can be turned around, they’ve certainly done it in different ways.
For France, it’s been about a youth movement. Kylian Mbappe, quite possibly the frontrunner for the Golden Ball (best player of the tournament), is just 19 years old, while the majority of France’s other top contributors–Antoine Griezmann, 27, N’Golo Kante, 27, Paul Pogba, 25, Samuel Umtiti, 24, Raphael Varane, 25, Benjamin Pavard, 22–are all under the age of 28.
For Croatia, it’s been veterans leading the way. Ivan Perisic, 29, Ivan Rakitic, 30, and potential Golden Ball winner Luka Modric, 32, have controlled the midfield, with Mario Mandzukic, 32, up front, and Domagoj Vida, 29, and Dejan Lovren, 29, holding it down on defense.
It’s an interesting contrast, and it should make for a fascinating final. The midfield battle of Pogba and Kante vs. Modric and Rakitic will be especially compelling, though there are going to be plenty of good matchups all over the field.
France are the favorites, and it would be hard to argue otherwise. Not only have Les Bleus been dominant in their run to the final, but Croatia face a potential problem concerning conditioning, as they’ve played the equivalent of one more full game due to extra time, and they’ll have one less day of rest.
Still, if we’ve learned anything over the last month, it’s that nothing can be assumed. This one could go either way, and it’s going to be thrilling to watch it play out.
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