Football fans are eagerly awaiting the clash between France and Spain, which will take place on Tuesday evening in the semi-finals of the 2026 World Cup.

The French national team secured their place in the last four after a 2-0 victory over Morocco, while Spain qualified following their thrilling 2-1 win over Belgium.

French newspaper L'Équipe reported that Kylian Mbappé, captain of Les Bleus, will try to shake off a negative record that haunts him: at both club and international level, he has played 5 knockout matches against Lamine Yamal and lost all of them.

Yamal has outperformed Mbappé in all direct knockout encounters between them, whether with clubs or national teams.

Against Spain, Mbappé suffered two consecutive semi-final defeats: the first at Euro 2024 (1-2), and the second in the UEFA Nations League last year (4-5).

At club level, the Real Madrid star has fared no better, losing 3 finals to Barcelona led by Lamine Yamal.

Kylian Mbappé lost the 2025 Copa del Rey final 2-3, then the Spanish Super Cup finals in 2025 and 2026 with scores of 2-5 and 2-3 respectively.

L'Équipe noted: 'The only time Mbappé got the better of Yamal in a knockout tie dates back to the 2023-2024 Champions League quarter-finals, which were played over two legs. Paris Saint-Germain lost the first leg at home 3-2, before winning the return leg in Spain 4-1 to secure qualification.'