Here are some of the abiding memories from the showpiece tournament.
Africa rising
Sofiane Boufal’s impromptu jig with his mother after Morocco’s quarter-final victory over Portugal was as endearing and refreshing as having the underdogs in the last four.
For the first time since Africa had multiple representatives at a World Cup, all five teams recorded at least one group stage win while Senegal and Morocco made it to the last 16.
The Moroccans created more history by becoming the first African/Arab team to make it to the semi-final.
Asian pride
Tears, relief and pent-up emotions were released after South Korea made it through to the round of 16. They had beaten Portugal 2-1 but were waiting for a favourable score between Uruguay and Ghana to confirm their progress.
The Koreans were one of three Asian Football Confederation teams, alongside Japan and Australia, to advance from their groups.
While Saudi Arabia did not join them, they served up perhaps the biggest upset in World Cup history when they claimed a come-from-behind 2-1 win over Argentina.
Kane not able for once
Trailing 2-1 to France, Harry Kane missed his penalty - he scored his first to equalise - after blazing his effort high over the bar as the Three Lions endured more penalty agony.
The England captain later wrote on Instagram: “Absolutely gutted. We’ve given it everything and it’s come down to a small detail which I take responsibility for. There’s no hiding from it, it hurts and it’ll take some time to get over it but that’s part of sport.”
What next for Ronaldo?
It was not the heroic finish he envisioned, as Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo walked into the tunnel alone after his country fell at the quarter-finals after a defeat to Morocco.
He appeared in tears, knowing his last chance to win the trophy was over. He became the first man to score in five World Cups but exited a shadow of the player he once was.
Neymar’s humanity
Known to be talented but tetchy, exciting but emotional, Brazil’s talisman revealed a different side to himself in Qatar. Sobbing after his team lost to Croatia in the quarter-final, a boy in Croatian colours approached him and was stopped by security.
However, the teary Neymar waved him through, shook his hand and embraced the youngster who later turned out to be Ivan Perisic’s son.
Messi turns back the clock
Wow, is this man really 35? There were 69 minutes on the clock in the semi-final and Argentina’s ageing maestro was on the right flank, marshalled tightly by Croatia’s highly rated 20-year-old defender Josko Gvardiol.
Lionel Messi then possibly halved Gvardiol’s transfer value by turning him inside out before speeding past him to set up Julian Alvarez and seal the 3-0 victory.
Nothing but respect
No animosity, only respect as Frenchman Kylian Mbappe and Moroccan Achraf Hakimi shared a warm embrace after their semi-final clash.
The pair have had a bromance since Mbappe helped Hakimi settle down in Paris St-Germain by speaking to him in Spanish, and they soon bonded over fashion and video games.
On his day off, Mbappe even caught up with Hakimi before the last-four match.
Fight against injustice
Protests dominated the earlier rounds, with the Germans posing for their pre-match photo against Japan by covering their mouths, in reaction to the OneLove armband ban.
Nine nations had intended to wear the rainbow armband, in support of the LGBTQ+ community and to promote diversity, but abandoned those plans after Fifa threatened them with sporting sanctions.
Separately, the Iranian team defiantly refused to sing their national anthem before their game against England in an act of solidarity with protesters back home.
Happiest dismissal
Vincent Aboubakar’s header to secure Cameroon’s first win over Brazil was always going to be imortalised but it was enhanced by the shirt-ripping celebration and ensuing scenes.
The rules dictated that he received a yellow card but as Aboubakar had already been booked, referee Ismail Elfath had no choice but to send him off.
The official smiled and shook Aboubakar’s hand while the Cameroon captain saw the funny side, grinning and walking off the pitch with his hand raised.
Thin line of VAR
What is with Germany and controversies over whether a football has crossed the line?
Fifty-six years after the hotly-disputed Geoff Hurst goal that handed England the initiative in the 1966 World Cup final, Die Mannschaft again felt hard done by when Japan’s winner against Spain was allowed to stand by the Video Assistant Referee despite the ball appearing to have gone out before Kaoru Mitoma crossed for Ao Tanaka to score.
The result meant the Germans were eliminated after the group stage.
