FIFA World Cup 2026 Final: Spain has performed brilliantly and won the title of FIFA World Cup 2026. Spain defeated defending champion Argentina 1-0 in the final match played at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on Sunday, July 19.
There was a tough fight between the two teams for the stipulated 90 minutes and the score remained 0-0. After this the match reached extra time, where the Spanish team won.
In the 106th minute of the match, substitute player Ferran Torres scored the decisive goal for Spain. Another substitute player Nico Williams gave a brilliant pass to Torres, on which Torres scored and made Spain the champion of the FIFA World Cup.
Argentina’s dream broken again
With victory in the FIFA World Cup Final, Spain has won the World Cup title for the second time. Earlier, Spain had won the World Cup trophy in the year 2010. At the same time, the defending champion Argentina team could not fulfill its dream of winning the World Cup title for the fourth time.
Argentina could not even repeat the feat like Italy and Brazil. Italy had won two consecutive World Cup titles in 1934 and 1938, while Brazil had won back to back World Cup titles in the 1958 and 1962 editions. This time even the magic of Argentine captain Lionel Messi could not work in the final match.
The journey to reach the final was difficult
The journey to FIFA World Cup 2026 has not been easy for both Spain and Argentina. Spain made it to the finals by defeating strong teams like France and Portugal. At the same time, Argentina had won the ticket to the final by winning three consecutive knockout matches in very exciting matches that lasted till extra time.
Spain dominated in the first half, but did not score a goal
The first half of the final match was very competitive and neither of the two teams could score a goal. During this period the Spanish team showed a more aggressive game. Spain took shots on target at the goal post twice, while Argentina did not take a single shot in the first half.
Ball possession was also in favor of Spain in the first half. Spain had 65 percent ball possession. Argentine captain Lionel Messi was continuously marked by the Spanish players, due to which he could not do anything special. On the other hand, Spain’s young star Lamine Yamal also could not leave his mark in the first half.
Argentine defender Lisandro Martinez received a yellow card during the first half. After some time he got injured and had to be taken off the field. Nicolas Otamendi was fielded in his place.
Spain’s dominance in the second half also
The dominance of the Spanish team increased further in the second half. Spain retained 68 percent ball possession. However, despite all his dominance, he could not score a goal in the stipulated time.
Spain took accurate aim at the goal post 8 times, but Argentinian goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez performed brilliantly and stopped the Spanish attack every time. On the other hand, Argentina team could not keep a single shot on target even in the second half.
Argentina suffered a big blow in the injury time of the second half. Enzo Fernandez received a yellow card for the second time in the match, after which he had to leave the field. If a player receives a second yellow card in the same match, he is immediately shown a red card.
Ferran Torres changed the course of the match
The match went into extra time after the score remained 0-0 for the stipulated 90 minutes. A tough fight continued between the two teams, but in the 106th minute Spain got the moment it was waiting for.
Substitute player Nico Williams gave a brilliant pass to Ferran Torres. Torres did not waste this opportunity and gave Spain a 1-0 lead by sending the ball into the goal post. This goal proved to be the decisive goal of the match and Spain defeated Argentina and won the FIFA World Cup 2026 title.
Spain’s starting eleven
Spain’s starting eleven included goalkeeper Unai Simon, Pedro Porro, Pau Cubarsi, Aymeric Laporte, Marc Cucurella, Rodri, Fabian Ruiz, Alex Baena, Dani Olmo, Lamine Yamal and Mikel Oyarzabal. Rodri captained the team.
Argentina’s starting eleven
Argentina’s starting eleven includes goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez, Gonzalo Montiel, Cristian Romero, Lisandro Martínez, Nicolas Tagliafico, Rodrigo De Paul, Nicolas Gonzalez, Alexis Mac Allister, Enzo Fernandez, captain Lionel Messi and Julian Alvarez (Julian Alvarez) were involved.
This was Spain’s journey till the final
Spain performed brilliantly in Group H and topped the group with 7 points. The team defeated Saudi Arabia and Uruguay, while its match against Cape Verde was a draw.
In the Round of 32, Spain made its intentions clear by defeating Austria 3-0. After this, in the Round of 16, it won against Portugal by scoring a goal in the last minutes.
Spain defeated Belgium 2-1 in the quarter finals. After this, in the semi-finals, it surprised everyone by defeating the French team, which was considered a strong contender, 2-0 and made it to the finals.
Argentina made it to the finals
Defending champions Argentina topped Group J by defeating Algeria, Austria and Jordan. In the Round of 32, Cape Verde gave Argentina a tough fight, but Argentina won 3–2 in extra time.
In the Round of 16, Argentina’s team was behind by two goals at one time against Egypt. However, the team made a brilliant comeback and won the match 3-2.
After this, the match against Switzerland in the quarter-finals also lasted for 120 minutes. Argentina won the match 3-1. However, there was controversy regarding refereeing in this match.
In the semi-finals, Argentina made a last-minute comeback against England to win 2–1 and reach their second consecutive World Cup final. However, it suffered a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Spain in the final.
Face to face again in the World Cup after 60 years
A total of 14 international matches were played between Spain and Argentina before the final. Of these, both the teams had won 6-6 matches, while two matches were drawn.
In the history of the FIFA World Cup, both the teams had come face to face only once before. Argentina defeated Spain 2-1 in the group stage of the 1966 World Cup. Now after almost 60 years, both the teams clashed in the World Cup and this time Spain created history by defeating Argentina.
