Spain advances to final after deserved victory over France

Spain proved its worthiness as a finalist for the 2026 World Cup, having defeated France 2-0 in the semi-final match hosted at Dallas Stadium in Arlington, in a game where La Roja dominated the flow and managed its details with high professionalism.

Goals and key moments

Mikel Oyarzabal opened the scoring early in the 22nd minute with a confidently converted penalty to give Spain the lead. Prior to that, France had suffered a double blow; Adrien Rabiot received a yellow card in the 9th minute, and then the French coach was forced to make an early substitution in the 30th minute, bringing on Maxence Lacroix for William Saliba, who left the pitch early. In the 31st minute, Marc Cucurella of Spain received a yellow card.

At the end of the first half, France made a second substitution, bringing on Kouadio Koné for Rabiot, who finished his shift in the 45th minute. In the second half, the second goal came in the 58th minute to close the door on any French comeback, when Pedro Porro scored after a brilliant assist from Dani Olmo, making it 2-0.

Minutes 57 and 72 witnessed a wave of consecutive French substitutions; Désiré Doué came on for Bradley Barcola, then Théo Hernandez for Lucas Digne, and Ryan Cherki for Michael Olise. In the 83rd minute, Théo Hernandez underwent a VAR review without any change to the course of the match. In the 86th minute, Kylian Mbappé received a yellow card in a scene that reflected the frustration of the French side.

Meanwhile, Spain made their substitutions calmly and confidently; Ferran Torres came on for Oyarzabal in the 74th minute, then Mikel Merino for Dani Olmo and Pedro González for Fabián Ruiz in the 78th minute, before Marcos Llorente came on for Pedro Porro and Nico Williams for Alejandro Baena in the 84th minute.

Statistical overview

Possession: Spain 51% vs 49% France, close in possession but the difference was in utilization.

Total shots: Exact tie with 10 shots each, but Spain made better use of their chances.

Shots on target: France 3 vs Spain 2, while Spain scored from two shots.

Goalkeeper saves: Spain's goalkeeper made 3 saves vs France's 0.

Corners: France had a large advantage 7 to 1, but did not convert them into goals.

Yellow cards: France 2 vs Spain 1.

Man of the Match

Pedro Porro earned the Man of the Match award with a rating of 7.99, after a standout performance capped by the decisive goal in the 58th minute that sealed Spain's grip on the match and closed the door on any French hope of a comeback.

Follow the 2026 World Cup coverage moment by moment — results, match schedule, and group standings on Sabq.