By Earl Heath | Contributing Sports Writer
Spain continued its recent dominance over France, defeating Les Bleus 2-0 in the FIFA World Cup semifinal at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, to advance to the championship match.
The victory marked Spain’s third consecutive win over its European rival, following victories in the 2024 UEFA European Championship semifinal and the 2025 UEFA Nations League semifinal.
The loss also ended France’s bid to reach a third straight World Cup final, a feat accomplished only by West Germany (1982-90) and Brazil (1994-2002).
Mikel Oyarzabal opened the scoring with a first-half penalty after Lamine Yamal was fouled inside the penalty area. Pedro Porro doubled Spain’s lead early in the second half as the reigning European champions delivered one of their strongest performances of the tournament.
France’s challenge became even more difficult in the 30th minute when standout center back William Saliba left the match with a back injury and was replaced by Crystal Palace defender Maxence Lacroix.
Spain controlled possession throughout the match and effectively neutralized France’s dangerous attack, limiting the impact of stars Michael Olise, Kylian Mbappé and Ousmane Dembélé.
Midfielder Rodri anchored Spain’s performance with another commanding display, breaking up French attacks while directing play from the center of the field.
“It was a collective effort of everyone. Today was our best performance of the World Cup so far,” Rodri said after the match. “France is a very strong team and can punish you everywhere. But everyone on Spain rose to the level.”
Spain advances to the World Cup final, where it will face the winner of the England-Argentina semifinal on Sunday in East Rutherford, New Jersey.