Spain Beats France 2-0, Advances to 2026 World Cup Final

Spain beat France 2-0 at AT&T Stadium on July 14 behind goals from Mikel Oyarzabal and Pedro Porro, reaching the July 19 World Cup final against Argentina.

Sports

uristocrat

July 15, 2026 2 min read

Spain Beats France 2-0, Advances to 2026 World Cup Final — Spain celebrate reaching the 2026 World Cup final after beating France 2-0. Photo: AP via Al Jazeera

Key Points

Spain beat France 2-0 in the World Cup semifinal at AT&T Stadium on July 14.
Mikel Oyarzabal scored from the penalty spot (22'); Pedro Porro added the second (58').
Spain out-created France by expected goals, 1.63 to 0.31, conceding once all tournament.
Spain advance to the July 19 final in their bid for a first men's World Cup title since 2010.

Spain are back in a World Cup final. La Roja beat France 2-0 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas on July 14, controlling the semifinal the whole bracket had been pointing toward and sending the tournament's most feared attack home without a goal.

Spain Control the Semifinal

Mikel Oyarzabal opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 22nd minute, and Pedro Porro doubled the lead in the 58th. The scoreline, if anything, flattered France: Spain finished with 1.63 expected goals to France's 0.31, and goalkeeper duties were quiet at one end while busy at the other. France arrived with the tournament's leading scorer in Kylian Mbappé and its most productive supply line; Spain smothered both, holding the Golden Boot leader without a clear look and extending a run that has now seen them concede once across the entire competition.

What's Next

The win books Spain a place in the July 19 final, where they will meet Argentina — the defending champions edged England 2-1 in the second semifinal. Spain last lifted the trophy in 2010, and this side has reached the final on the strength of the opposite profile to that famous tiki-taka team: not a possession machine that passes opponents into submission, but a defense-first outfit that wins tight, low-scoring games and trusts a single moment of quality to settle them. One win separates them from a second star. See our full preview of Sunday's Argentina-Spain final at MetLife Stadium.

For the road here, see Spain's quarterfinal, a 2-1 win over Belgium on a late Mikel Merino goal.

Source: Al Jazeera and FIFA.

Spain went on to win the final itself: a 1-0 extra-time victory over Argentina that delivered the country's second World Cup title.