For about ten days now, the football World Cup has been emerging from its usual four-year hibernation to capture minds just as it always does. More than a week into the year’s biggest event, the usual passion that typically accompanies such a sporting spectacle has yet to fully ignite. On June 22, 1986, this characteristic fervor reached one of its most memorable climaxes, unfolding in two distinct acts. On that day, football had the privilege of serving as the stage for an artistic performance that can be summed up in a single name: Diego Armando Maradona.
Forty years later, the 2026 edition of the World Cup still seems reluctant to offer us those unique moments, such as the one Maradona transcended and whose aura remains undeniable. Those present at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City were privileged to witness five minutes elevated by Maradona’s genius, a masterpiece now immortalized online. The backdrop gave the day’s match, Argentina versus England, another dimension: one fueled by the Falklands War four years earlier, during which the British reclaimed the islands claimed by Argentina by force.
It was against this backdrop that Maradona rose as a hero to avenge his country. A few epic minutes were enough to crush the English spirit. The first highlight came when he used his hand to rise above English goalkeeper Peter Shilton and score what he would later describe as the goal of the “Hand of God.” This eternal moment preceded the “Goal of the Century,” initiated by a slalom run that began in the other half of the pitch, pierced the entire English defense, and found a conclusion that even commanded the admiration of his victims.
Now, forty years later, as these lines are written, the 2026 World Cup is still searching for its defining moment. The matches played so far struggle to stay in memory as effectively as those five minutes on June 22, 1986. A contrast that might prove Bergson right, for whom lived durations are not equal: a high intensity of a few seconds can carry more weight than the succession of a considerable number of weeks. Will this World Cup have its moment that transcends time to be etched in our memories? It has until July 19 to find it.
Fenitra Ratefiarivony
Captured & Published at: 2026-06-22 07:30:39 (Madagascar Local Time EAT)
Original Source: https://www.lexpress.mg/2026/06/le-poids-dun-instant.html