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FourFourTwo
Sport
Richard Buxton

What is FIFA World Cup closing ceremony and why is Tom Cruise appearing?

PARIS, FRANCE - AUGUST 10: Tom Cruise attends the women's football Gold Medal match between Brazil and USA during the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Parc des Princes on August 10, 2024 in Paris, France. (Photo by Karwai Tang/Getty Images).

The full line-up for the World Cup's closing ceremony has been revealed.

Sunday's World Cup final will see the curtain brought down on a memorable summer as the new champions of the international game are finally crowned.

A marathon 104 matches are set to enter the record books from the inaugural 48-team format tournament played across the United States, Mexico and Canada.

World Cup closing ceremony line-up revealed

Tom Cruise (Image credit: Getty Images)

MetLife Stadium is hosting the final and will also stage the World Cup's first half-time show featuring Madonna, Justin Bieber, BTS and Shakira, among others.

Before the interval extravaganza, a closing ceremony will take place in what FIFA claim is meant to "celebrate the 48 teams’ unforgettable journey" in the competition.

MetLife Stadium is hosting the World Cup final (Image credit: Getty Images)

Kicking off 90 minutes before the final's 8pm UK time start, the worlds of music, film and social media will coalesce with Tom Cruise headlining the ceremony's line-up.

The Mission Impossible star is making a 'special appearance' and previously abseiled from the Stade de France's roof to close out the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Also joining Cruise on the billing is YouTuber Darren Watkins, better known to his subscribers as IShowSpeed, as well as singers Robbie Williams, Nicole Scherzinger and Laura Pausini.

Williams and Pausini headlined the closing ceremony of FIFA's revamped Club World Cup in 2025 while the former Take That star also opened the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

Rounding off the line-up will be multi-award winning singer Jennifer Hudson, who is set to perform the United States' national anthem as part of the spectacle.

Nichole Scherzinger will also be performing (Image credit: Jason Squires/WireImage)

The closing ceremony is being produced by Balich Wonder Studio, who oversaw all three of the 2026 World Cup's opening ceremonies in the US, Mexico and Canada.

They were also responsible for the 2022 opening and closing events in Qatar as well as staging a number of other pre-match shows in other football competitions.

The Milan-based studio previously produced ceremonies for Euro 2024, the Champions League final's pre-match show and the Africa Cup of Nations.

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