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Spain beat France 2-0 in the World Cup semi-final, Mikel Oyarzabal converting a penalty in the 22nd minute after Lucas Digne fouled Lamine Yamal in the box, before Pedro Porro doubled the lead just after the hour following a slick one-two with Dani Olmo. Spain's defence was suffocating all night — Kylian Mbappé barely got a kick and finished with a yellow card for colliding with keeper Unai Simón in the 86th minute, capping a miserable evening for Les Bleus. Rodri and Porro were the standout performers as Spain controlled the game from start to finish, while France's players didn't help their reputation by refusing to front up in the mixed zone afterwards. Spain reach their first final since 2010 and will face Argentina, who came from behind to beat England 2-1, at MetLife Stadium on 19 July. France's World Cup ends in the third-place play-off against England on 18 July, for whatever consolation that's worth.
Pre-match Talking Points
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1Win this and you're in a World Cup final; lose it and you're on the next flight home with nothing to show for it. It's a loaded one too — for the first time ever, the top four ranked teams in the world (Argentina, England, France and Spain) have all reached the semis, so nobody's had it easy to get here. France are chasing a third final in four tournaments, having won it in 2018 and lost the 2022 final to Argentina on penalties. Spain last won the whole thing back in 2010 and haven't been near a final since — this is their route back to the top.
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2Spain and France have only actually met at a World Cup once before — 2006, last 16, France won 3-1. Since then, though, it's been all Spain: they beat France 2-1 in the Euro 2024 semifinal and again in the Nations League not long after. Lamine Yamal clearly hasn't forgotten either, saying after Spain's quarterfinal win that 'if France should fear anyone, it's us... we have knocked them out, we have beaten them twice.' Not exactly diplomatic, but he's got the receipts.
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3Lamine Yamal is playing in his first ever World Cup and has already made himself the story of the semifinal before a ball's been kicked, needling France with talk of Spain's recent record against them. He's a teenager with the nerve to say that kind of thing out loud and then the game to back it up — a Barcelona winger good enough that Spain have built their attack around him despite his age. If Spain are going to trouble France's back line, the way through will very likely run through him. Worth watching just to see whether the confidence holds up on the biggest stage he's ever played on.
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4Kylian Mbappé picked up what's being called a 'minor ankle injury' in the quarterfinal win over Morocco, but manager Didier Deschamps says he's '100%' fit to go. Take that with a pinch of salt until kickoff, given how much France's attack runs through him. There's a legacy angle too — Deschamps has already said this World Cup will be his last in charge of France, so every game from here is tinged with a farewell-tour feel.
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5Spain have conceded precisely one goal in six games — the best defensive record at the tournament by some distance. France, meanwhile, have scored a tournament-high 16 — nobody's put the ball in the net more. Something has to give, and it's rare you get an immovable object against an unstoppable force this late in a World Cup. Throw in Mbappé sitting on 8 goals and eyeing the Golden Boot, and there's a genuine chance this becomes one of the tournament's classic matches.
Team Talking Points
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1Spain reached the final by beating two-time champions France 2-0 in the semi — goals from Mikel Oyarzabal and Pedro Porro — and manager Luis de la Fuente's side have been unbeaten in 37 matches since a single loss to Colombia back in March 2024. That's not a hot streak, that's a different sport.
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2Nineteen-year-old Lamine Yamal is the story of this Spain team, and he marked final week with an Instagram post reading "Nuevayol, we're coming for you" — New York slang for the city hosting the final at MetLife Stadium. Confidence is not this squad's problem.
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3Spain have conceded exactly one goal in the whole tournament, the best defensive record of anyone left, going up against the team that's scored the most of anyone. It's genuinely being billed as the best attack in the competition against the best defence, which is the rare bit of tournament hype that's actually true.
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4Spain's Rodri called Messi "the greatest of all time" this week but was careful to add that Argentina "is much more than Messi" — which is either generous sportsmanship or a very polite way of saying Spain have done their homework on everyone else too.
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5This is only Spain's second-ever World Cup final; the first was in 2010, and they won it. There's no muscle memory of losing at this stage — mention that and you'll sound like you've actually followed them beyond this tournament.
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Top thing to say down the pub
Spain have conceded one goal all tournament and Yamal's out here posting 'we're coming for you' on Instagram — this is a team that's stopped pretending it isn't the best side in the competition.
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Avoid saying
"Spain always overthink it and go out on penalties" — that was true for about a decade and hasn't been since they won the Euros in 2024; say it now and you'll sound like you stopped watching Spain around 2012.
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1France finished the World Cup in fourth place after losing the third-place play-off 6-4 to England in Miami last night — genuinely one of the wildest scorelines of the whole tournament. Ten goals in a match both managers openly said they wished didn't exist is very on-brand for how that fixture always plays out.
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2Kylian Mbappé scored twice in the defeat and became the all-time leading World Cup goalscorer, taking his tally to 22 and passing Lionel Messi's previous record of 21. Slightly awkward timing — he made history in a match his team lost 6-4, so lead with the record, not the scoreline, and you'll sound like you know what you're talking about.
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3It was also Didier Deschamps' final game in charge of France after 14 years, during which he won the 2018 World Cup and reached the 2022 final. Bowing out with a 6-4 defeat in a play-off nobody wanted isn't the send-off anyone would have scripted, but a World Cup winner's medal means his legacy was never really in question.
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4France were already down to a patched-up defence, having lost William Saliba to a back injury in the semi-final loss to Spain. England took full advantage, with Bukayo Saka running riot — handy context for anyone wondering how a team this good let in six.
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5France arrived as reigning runners-up and one of the pre-tournament favourites; they leave in fourth after a semi-final defeat to Spain and a chaotic play-off loss. It's a comedown by their own recent standards, even if 'officially the fourth-best team on the planet' is still not a bad way to end a World Cup.
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Top thing to say down the pub
Mbappé became the all-time World Cup top scorer last night — 22 goals, more than Messi ever managed — and somehow still finished on the losing side of a 6-4.
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Avoid saying
"At least they racked up a good goal tally" — congratulating France on how many goals went in during a match they lost 6-4 is not the flex it sounds like, and any real fan will hear it as exactly the wrong takeaway.