Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo will play at this World Cup despite a combined age of nearly 80. It is a credit to their commitment to football and, undoubtedly, improvements in sport science that the two defining players of the last 25 years are still going, but it also begs the question of why can't the game let go of these two superstars? Messi and Ronaldo are not the only players in the upper age bracket at this tournament, is that because there is a dearth of talent coming through? Or has the media landscape that allowed them to rise so high become more fragmented in the age of niche passions.

In the first of our World Cup series, James Horncastle, Rory Smith and Tariq Panja wrestle with these questions and more.

P1: (11:05)

P2: (26:46)

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Produced by: Tom Bassam

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Music: Kid Kodi - Blue Dot Sessions

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