Spain deliver a dominant 2-0 victory over France to reach the 2026 World Cup final. Oyarzabal and Porro score as La Roja end France's title defence.
Spain delivered a commanding performance to defeat France 2-0 and reach the 2026 World Cup final. Goals from Mikel Oyarzabal and Pedro Porro secured a first final appearance since 2010, ending France's hopes of a third consecutive title match.
Spain produced a stunning semifinal display on Tuesday night in Dallas, defeating tournament favourites France 2-0 to book their place in the World Cup final for the first time since their 2010 triumph. The victory extended Spain's remarkable unbeaten run in regulation to 37 matches and sent a clear statement that Luis de la Fuente's side are now the team to beat in Sunday's showpiece.
The breakthrough arrived in the 22nd minute when Lucas Digne fouled teenage sensation Lamine Yamal inside the penalty area, with Mikel Oyarzabal converting the resulting spot-kick to give La Roja a deserved lead. France suffered another blow just eight minutes later when centre-back William Saliba was forced off through injury, replaced by Maxence Lacroix, further disrupting Didier Deschamps' plans. The French manager had already been forced into a half-time change, introducing Manu Kone for the booked Adrien Rabiot, who had been shown a yellow card as early as the eighth minute.
Spain doubled their advantage in the 58th minute through a beautifully worked team goal. Pedro Porro exchanged passes with Dani Olmo before continuing his run into the box and calmly finishing past Mike Maignan, giving Spain a commanding lead. Yamal, celebrating his 19th birthday, thought he had added a third six minutes later, but his effort was ruled out for offside. France's best chance arrived when Kylian Mbappe's shot from the edge of the box was deflected behind, and goalkeeper Unai Simon produced a crucial save to deny Desire Doue's lob in the 83rd minute.
The result marked France's first defeat in a World Cup knockout match excluding penalties since 2014, a record that had spanned 23 matches. For Deschamps, who will step down as France manager after the third-place play-off, it was a fifth defeat against Spain during his tenure. The victory also means Spain have recorded a tournament-record 13 goals at this World Cup, matching their six consecutive victories from their title-winning campaign in 2010.
Spain will now face either Argentina or England in the final at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on Sunday, while France must regroup for the third-place play-off on Saturday, where they will face the loser of the other semifinal.
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