World Cup Story Feed
World Cup Story Feed
45 minutes and 39 seconds.
45 minutes and 39 seconds.
At Vancouver's BC Place Stadium, just after the second half kicked off, Vargas scored on his first touch, changing the scoreline. From walking out of the tunnel onto the pitch to the ball hitting the back of Canada's net, 39 seconds. FOX Sports later labeled it: the fastest second-half goal in a Men's World Cup since 2010.
Switzerland sealed top spot in the group, winning 2-1. Vargas scored his second goal of the tournament, tying En-Nesyri for second place on Sevilla's all-time World Cup scorers list. Only Luis Fabiano, with three goals in 2010, stands ahead of him.
The same Ruben Vargas: in the 25/26 La Liga season, 24 appearances, 3 goals and 6 assists, playing 1,608 minutes. A FotMob rating of 7.0, decent, but not matching the market value of a starting winger. After three group stage games at the World Cup, his goal tally is already two-thirds of his entire league season. The data splits into two faces within a single year: one at Sevilla's training ground, the other on North American turf.
Let's rewind.
On October 2, 2024, Vargas suffered a hamstring injury. That sidelined him for 88 days, returning on November 21. Then an ankle issue kept him out for another 50 days. Entering the 25/26 season, on January 13, 2026, his hamstring snapped again, costing him another 49 days.
Since October 2024, he has accumulated over 183 days out injured.
What was Sevilla's medical team doing? A difficult question to answer. They certainly managed Vargas's training and playing time meticulously—in the 25/26 season, he made 24 league appearances, 20 starts and 4 as a substitute, with his minutes carefully controlled. But with the body, you can manage training loads, but you can't control when a muscle fiber decides to stop cooperating.
On June 4, the Swiss team assembled in San Diego. Vargas withdrew from training midway through to undergo a separate treatment plan. Bluewin's report used the term "precautionary." On June 7, he missed a warm-up match against Australia due to a "minor undisclosed injury," continuing individual training.
Not until June 12 did Blick Sport confirm he returned to full team training, fully healthy.
Three days later, he played 79 minutes in his World Cup debut.
The money story begins in January 2025.
Sevilla signed Vargas from Augsburg for a transfer fee of around €2.5 million, with a contract until 2029. His current Transfermarkt valuation is €12 million, a 4.8-fold book value increase in 18 months. It looks like a brilliant piece of business—provided someone is willing to pay up before June 30.
June 30 is Sevilla's financial deadline.
In the 24/25 season, the club lost over €50 million. Personnel costs were €114 million, representing 99% of revenue. A healthy club's standard is between 60% and 70%; Sevilla's figure looks like someone added an extra nine in Excel. Cumulative debt over five years exceeds €200 million, with negative equity over €65 million. A SoccerWorldHQ report put it bluntly: the club needs to generate around €10 million in profit before June and has "no choice but to sell players."
In the summer of 2025, Villarreal came calling. According to Fichajes.net and TransferFeed, offers started around €7 million and went up to €15 million, all rejected. Negotiations broke down on September 1. In December, there were rumors of Leeds United preparing a €20 million bid—but note, "preparing a bid" and "having made a bid" are two different things; no source confirmed this offer was formally submitted.
Sevilla held onto their most expensive asset, betting on three World Cup group stage games. Win, and they're geniuses. Lose, and it's a management failure.
In May, The Athletic reported a consortium led by Sergio Ramos reached a €444 million takeover deal. Before the new owners take over, the old management needs to clean up the books by June 30. Vargas's trading window sits precisely in the gap between the old and new power transition.
June 13, at Levi's Stadium in San Francisco, World Cup opener. Vargas started and played 79 minutes, with 0 goals and 0 assists, but FotMob gave him an 8.1 rating. Embolo scored a penalty in the 17th minute, Qatar equalized in stoppage time, 1-1.
Sevilla's official website published a feature: "Vargas plays 79 minutes."
June 18, against Bosnia and Herzegovina. Vargas came off the bench, scored to make it 2-0, then assisted Manzambi for the third goal in a 4-1 win. He was involved in two of the first three goals.
Sevilla's official website published another feature: "Eighth player to score at a World Cup."
A club that needs to sell is making high-profile promotions of their player's every World Cup appearance. It's essentially a shop window.
June 24, Vancouver. 39 seconds into the second half, he scored his second World Cup goal. Manzambi added another in the 57th minute, 2-1. ESPN noted post-match: Vargas and Manzambi became the first Swiss teammates to score in consecutive World Cup matches since Ballamann and Hugi in 1954.
Three group stage games, 2 goals, 1 assist. A winger who has missed over 183 days since October 2024 just produced the best two weeks of his career at the World Cup.
Vargas said in a FIFA.com interview: "There is no bigger stage than the World Cup. Words can't describe it."
Five years ago, in the 2021 European Championship quarter-finals, a 22-year-old Vargas missed a penalty in the shootout and wept on the pitch. A photo of Thiago Alcantara consoling him went viral on social media.
Five years later, on the same continent, he needed just 39 seconds.
On June 9, in an interview with Marca, he said something else: "I want to play in the Champions League one day."
Trabzonspor have already made contact. Sevilla is reportedly asking for €15 million. Some intermediaries believe a deal around €10 million could be done.
June 30.