It was the clash of the two most flawless sides in this tournament: France and Spain arrived at the semi-final with identical records – both teams had won all five of their previous matches, without a single defeat or draw between them. In the end, Spain came through emphatically, winning 2–0 to reach a World Cup final for the first time since their title-winning campaign in 2010.
Early setback from the penalty spot
France were put under pressure almost immediately. In the 9th minute, Rabiot picked up a yellow card – an early sign that the French defensive unit was struggling under duress. The opener arrived in the 22nd minute: Lucas Digne fouled Lamine Yamal inside the box, and Mikel Oyarzabal Ugarte converted the resulting penalty with clinical precision. The goal carried considerable symbolic weight – Oyarzabal had already scored the decisive strike in the UEFA Euro 2024 final, and that despite having missed the 2022 World Cup entirely through injury. The 2026 semi-final was, in fact, his very first World Cup appearance. France suffered a further blow before half-time when William Saliba was forced off injured in the 30th minute, with Lacroix coming on as his replacement. The loss of the Arsenal centre-back visibly disrupted France's defensive shape.
Porro wraps it up
The France manager made changes at half-time, with Kone replacing the already-booked Rabiot. The adjustments, however, had little effect. In the 58th minute, the second goal arrived through a move of textbook simplicity: Dani Olmo played a one-two to set the play in motion, and Pedro Antonio Porro Sauceda made an unmarked run into the box before finishing cleanly along the ground with his instep. France had simply lost track of Porro. The Tottenham Hotspur full-back had taken over Spain's right defensive flank after Dani Carvajal was left out of the World Cup squad – and he seized his moment on the biggest stage with that decisive goal.
France without an answer – Mbappé breaks a record but makes no impact
France made a number of substitutions as the second half progressed, introducing Doue, Cherki and Hernandez among others. Spain responded in kind, bringing off Oyarzabal and Olmo once their work was done, in the 74th and 78th minutes respectively. Kylian Mbappé, who made his 21st World Cup appearance in this match – surpassing Hugo Lloris as France's most-capped player at World Cups – remained largely isolated throughout and picked up a yellow card in the 86th minute. The final whistle confirmed the 0–2 scoreline. Spain are through to the final of the 2026 World Cup, a tournament featuring 48 teams across 12 groups and the largest in the history of the World Cup. For France, the semi-final is the end of the road – despite an otherwise unblemished record throughout the competition.
