Semi-final
France 0-2 Spain
Everyone expected a classic between the 2 best teams left, and instead Spain made the favorites look ordinary.
First came a penalty from Mikel Oyarzabal, and then a second goal from Pedro Porro.
That was enough for Spain to dominate, and France barely got near the Spanish goal all night.
So Spain are through to the final, and the biggest favorites of this World Cup are going home in the worst way possible.
How the match went
Spain looked strangely relaxed for a team playing a World Cup semi-final, and France never once made them uncomfortable.
We picked France 2-1 in our preview and we got it wrong.
It started in the 22nd minute when the French defender Lucas Digne fouled Spain's 19-year-old forward Lamine Yamal inside the penalty area.
That gave Spain a penalty, which is a free shot from the spot after a foul.
Spain forward Mikel Oyarzabal scored it for the only goal of the first half.
In the 58th minute Spain defender Pedro Porro passed to Spain forward Dani Olmo and ran forward to take the ball straight back.
Porro scored with the side of his foot to make it 2-0.
And the worst is that France never created one clear chance, and they finished the game with 0.30 expected goals.
Expected goals measures how good your chances were, where 1.00 means a chance you would score every time.
France's 0.30 means that across the whole game they never put together even one third of a real chance, which is their worst at a World Cup in 60 years.
Spain have kept 6 clean sheets in their 7 games, which just means 6 games where nobody scored against them.
The 1 goal they did let in all tournament came from Belgium in the quarter-final.
That defense is the reason Spain are in the final.
In the end France won all 6 of their games at this World Cup and then lost 2-0 in the one that would have put them in the final.
And there is one run nobody can explain, because France forward Kylian Mbappe has now lost all 6 knockout games he has played against Yamal since joining Real Madrid.
That's a stat that will haunt him for a long time.
Key moments
- ⚽ 22' Oyarzabal (Spain) (pen)
- ⚽ 58' Porro (Spain)
Goals in the order they were scored.
pen = penalty.
Match highlights
Watch on YouTube- Date
- Tuesday, July 14
- Kickoff Time
- 14:00 (Chicago time)
- Stage
- Semi-final
- Stadium
- AT&T Stadium, Arlington
What's next for Spain?
Spain are through to the final, 1 game away from their 2nd World Cup after the one they won in 2010.
The final is on Sunday, July 19, 2026 at MetLife Stadium against the winner of England vs Argentina.
Whoever comes through will have to do what almost nobody has managed here, which is score against Spain, so keep an eye on the bracket.
That is the end of this World Cup for France
France are out without scoring a single goal in this semi-final.
They drop into the 3rd-place playoff on Saturday, July 18, 2026 at Hard Rock Stadium against England.
So the team that beat Morocco 2-0 in the quarter-final now has to get ready for a game nobody really wants to play.
And it will be Didier Deschamps' last game as France manager, because he is leaving after this tournament.
Common questions
Where and when was France vs Spain played?
The game was played on July 14, 2026 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, near Dallas, USA. It was a semi-final at the 2026 World Cup.
What was the final score of France vs Spain?
Spain won 2-0. It was 0-1 at half-time, and France did not score at all, which was their first defeat of the tournament.
Who scored for Spain against France?
Mikel Oyarzabal and Pedro Porro scored. Oyarzabal scored a penalty in the 22nd minute, and Porro made it 2-0 in the 58th minute.
Have Spain knocked France out before?
Yes. Spain beat France 2-1 in the semi-final of the 2024 European Championship. So Spain have now ended France's tournament in 2 big semi-finals in a row.