Luka Modric Photo: VCG

Ask me what I remember most from the 2018 World Cup, and I won't say France lifting the trophy. I'll say Luka Modric, the Croatian captain, standing alone in the Moscow rain on July 15, 2018. As French players celebrated their triumph, Modric slowly walked toward the podium to receive the Golden Ball award as the tournament's best player for captaining the Croatian side to the final after a month-long journey that felt almost impossible. 

Many fans from China and around the world were moved to tears that night. Not because Croatia had lost, but because Modric had shown something more powerful: Football's greatest stories are not always about lifting trophies. Sometimes they are about refusing to surrender.

At the age of 40, Modric is among the legends likely playing their final World Cup - the 2026 tournament - which will kick off on Thursday across the US, Canada and Mexico. 

For Chinese fans who grew up watching them, the 2026 edition will be a bittersweet farewell, as Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar and Manuel Neuer are likely playing their final World Cup. They are in the twilight of their international careers but have left unforgettable memories for Chinese fans in past events.

For many Chinese fans, saying goodbye to these legends feels like saying goodbye to a piece of their own youth.

Unlike many global superstars, Modric never looked like a footballing superhero. He was not physically imposing. He was not flashy. His journey was not paved with privilege or certainty. Relying on relentless hard work rather than talent alone, he embodied a belief familiar to many Chinese people: Perseverance can carry an ordinary person farther than anyone expects. Perhaps that is why Modric resonates so deeply with Chinese fans.

He dictated the tempo on the pitch with his vision and playmaking passes, helping Croatia survive three consecutive knockout matches that went to extra time, two of them decided by penalties en route to the final in 2018. The slight midfielder was nicknamed "Magic Flute" by Chinese fans, partly because of a playful pun on the pronunciation of his name in Chinese and because of his elegant passing and graceful movement, like a conductor guiding an orchestra.

Modric is expected to play with a protective mask following a cheekbone injury he sustained in April, an image that only deepens the bittersweet feeling surrounding what is likely to be his final appearance on football's biggest stage.

Among these stars, few have enjoyed a relationship with Chinese fans as unique as Neymar. Many first discovered Neymar through grainy online highlight videos from Santos, where his football is characterized by stepovers, flicks, and outrageous dribbles, making football feel like an art form.

At a time when Chinese football fans increasingly consumed football through social media clips and online communities, Neymar became the perfect symbol of football's creativity and freedom.

After enduring three difficult years of injuries, Neymar is preparing for what could be his fourth and final World Cup. He may no longer be at his peak, but many Chinese fans will still find themselves hoping that he gets one last opportunity to chase the trophy that has always eluded him.

For many Chinese fans, Neuer was more than a goalkeeper. He changed the way many of us understood the position itself.

For a generation raised on traditional goalkeepers who stayed rooted to their goal line, Neuer seemed revolutionary. During Germany's victorious 2014 World Cup campaign, he played almost like an additional defender, charging out of his penalty area with a fearlessness that bordered on madness.

Legends eventually leave the stage. Yet the emotions they gave us remain.

The 2026 World Cup may crown another champion. However, long after the trophy is lifted, what I will remember are the faces of those veterans taking one final bow.

Thank you, legends for helping turn a few World Cups into a lifetime of memories.

The author is a reporter with the Global Times. life@globaltimes.com.cn