As the World Cup final looms, what lessons can defeat teach us?

With fewer than 10 matches left to play, the 2026 FIFA World Cup is entering its final stretch. As the tournament continues and more national teams are defeated and eliminated, the dream of becoming world champion fades away.

Faced with this reality, a question arises: What message can defeat convey from the perspective of the Catholic faith?

The worldʼs most important national team tournament has already seen the elimination of host countries Mexico, the United States, and Canada, as well as teams with high aspirations like Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal and Luka Modrić’s Croatia.

Although one might think that a defeat brings only sadness and frustration, Father David Jasso, a priest of the Archdiocese of Monterrey, Mexico, and former sporting director of the Monterrey Soccer Club, said in an interview with ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News, that failure also offers important lessons.

“We learn more from failure and mistakes than from achievements and successes,” the priest stated, noting that defeat is part of life and personal growth.

He also highlighted that the World Cup has demonstrated the power of sport to bring people together around the…