Spain beat Argentina in extra time to become world champions for the second time
The Spanish national team were crowned champions of the 2026 World Cup after beating Argentina in the final. The match, which took place at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, USA, ended in a 1–0 victory for Spain after extra time.
In the first half, Spain had more possession and created dangerous chances, but neither side managed to break the deadlock.
After the break, Spain continued to control the game, whilst Argentina set a negative record for World Cup finals. In the first 75 minutes of the match, the team did not manage a single shot on target, becoming the first side in the history of World Cup finals to achieve this feat.
In the third minute of added time in the second half, Argentina were reduced to ten men. Enzo Fernández committed a rough foul on Pau Cubarsi in the centre of the pitch and was shown a second yellow card. He had picked up his first in the 82nd minute for arguing with the referee.
As the match ended goalless after normal time, the teams continued the contest into extra time.
In the 96th minute, Nico Williams put the ball into the Argentine net with a follow-up shot, but following a VAR review, the referee disallowed the goal due to a foul by Mikel Merino on Nicolás Otamendi.
The decisive moment came in the 106th minute. Lamine Yamal delivered a cross from the right flank to the far post; Nico Williams laid the ball off for Ferran Torres, who fired a powerful shot under the crossbar to secure victory for Spain.
In the 114th minute, Ferran Torres found the net for a second time, but the goal was disallowed for offside.
In the closing minutes of the match, the Argentines tried to fight back and force the game into a penalty shoot-out, but were unable to do so.
For the Spanish national team, this was their second World Cup final in history. The team won their first title in 2010, when they also defeated the Netherlands 1–0 after extra time.
Argentina played in their seventh World Cup final and their second in a row. At the 2022 World Cup, Lionel Scaloni’s side beat France on penalties to become world champions for the third time, following their triumphs in 1978 and 1986.
Earlier, in the third-place play-off, England beat France 6–4.
