Spain Destroys France To Reach World Cup Final
Spain have booked their place in the final of the 2026 FIFA World Cup after defeating France 2-0 at Dallas Stadium in Arlington on Tuesday evening.
It was only the second FIFA World Cup meeting between the two nations. Their previous encounter came in the Round of 16 at the 2006 tournament in Germany, when Spain took an early lead through David Villa’s penalty before France produced a remarkable comeback.
Franck Ribéry equalised before Patrick Vieira and Zinedine Zidane sealed a 3-1 victory to send Les Bleus into the quarter-finals.
Spain are now one win away from lifting their second FIFA World Cup trophy, having claimed their maiden title in South Africa in 2010. Since that triumph, La Roja have failed to reach the semi-finals in the 2014, 2018 and 2022 editions.
France, meanwhile, were bidding to win the World Cup for a third time after their triumphs in 1998 and 2018. Les Bleus were also chasing history by becoming only the third nation, after Germany and Brazil, to reach three consecutive FIFA World Cup finals. Germany achieved the feat in 1982, 1986 and 1990, while Brazil did so in 1994, 1998 and 2002. France reached the finals in 2018 and 2022.
Following the victory, Spain will face the winners of Wednesday’s second semi-final between Argentina and England in the World Cup final. France, meanwhile, will take on the losers of that encounter in the third-place play-off.
The match began at a lively tempo, with both sides creating promising opportunities in the opening stages. Spain eventually broke the deadlock in the 22nd minute when Mikel Oyarzabal calmly converted a penalty, firing a left-footed effort into the top-right corner.
The penalty was awarded after Lucas Digne kicked teenage sensation Lamine Yamal inside the area.
France came close to equalising on the stroke of half-time when Adrien Rabiot released Kylian Mbappé with a perfectly weighted through ball from the halfway line. However, Spain goalkeeper Unai Simón raced off his line to sweep up the danger before Mbappé could reach the ball.
Spain doubled their lead in the 58th minute as Pedro Porro finished with a right-footed strike from the centre of the box after being picked out by Dani Olmo.
Three minutes later, Yamal thought he had added a third goal after slotting home from close range, but the assistant referee raised his flag for offside.
France nearly pulled one back in the 65th minute when Aurélien Tchouaméni fired a right-footed effort from inside the penalty area, but his shot drifted wide of the target.
Both teams continued to create chances during an entertaining closing spell, but neither could add to the scoreline. Spain remained in control until the final whistle to secure a deserved 2-0 victory and advance to the 2026 FIFA World Cup final, while France’s hopes of reaching a third successive final came to an end.
