Given the chaotic traffic scenes around the Lusail Stadium here, many would have been stranded even as the short, but sweet closing ceremony ahead of the final between Argentina and France took place. Fans were urged to take their seats by 4:30 pm, ahead of the 6 pm final, but even till 5 pm most of the 88,000 seats were empty. At the end of a tournament to remember the event was aptly titled ‘A Night to Remember.’ Following an opening ceremony that celebrated bridging the gaps and getting to know the world beyond differences, the final ceremony lasted just 15 minutes. It was a mash-up of songs from the official soundtrack performed live by its singers Davido and Aisha who crooned Hayya Hayya Better Together. Bollywood actor Nora Fatehi was also among the performers.

Deepika evokes interest among foreign scribes

Bollywood superstar Deepika Padukone brought out the Jules Rimet Trophy alongside former Spain World Cup-winning goalkeeper Iker Casillas ahead of the Argentina v France World Cup final at the Lusail Stadium here. Padukone was on point with her poise as she smiled throughout the brief appearance. Some foreign journalists in the media box though didn’t know much about her and asked around only to be told that she’s a Bollywood superstar. Padukone, who flew into Qatar a day earlier, had earlier taken to Instagram to give her 70.5 million followers a sneak peak into the Louis Vuitton Trophy Trunk book and a snippet of her car journey after landing in the gulf nation.