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Arlington15 July. The first semi-final of the FIFA World Cup 2026 saw two European powerhouses clash in the name of Spain, who defeated defending champions France with a 2-0 victory and entered the final for the first time since 2010.

Mikel and Pedro ensured Spain’s victory

In this exciting match played at Dallas Stadium on Tuesday, Mikel Oyarzabal gave Spain the lead by scoring a penalty in the 23rd minute, while after the intermission, Pedro Porro scored the second goal in the 58th minute to ensure Spain’s victory.

In the semi-finals at the top level Spain’s third consecutive win over ‘Les Blues’

Interestingly, this is the third consecutive semi-final at the top level in which Spain has defeated ‘Les Blues’ (France’s team). Lamine Yamal scored in a 2-1 win against France in the semi-finals of the 2024 European Championship, days before his 17th birthday. Last year also in the UEFA Nations League, Spain defeated France 5-4.

Young player Lamin Yamal, who came on the field a day after his 19th birthday, had a goal disallowed due to a very close offside decision. This opportunity came soon after Spain took a 2-0 lead in the 58th minute thanks to excellent coordination from Pedro Porro and Dani Olmo. However, Yamal’s intelligent game-reading proved crucial in giving Spain an early lead.

France’s dream of entering the third consecutive World Cup final shattered

If seen, France, which is at the top position in the FIFA rankings, and its captain and star striker Kylian Mbappe were trying to become only the third team in history to reach the World Cup final for the third consecutive time. For now, after this defeat, France will now compete for the third place in Miami Gardens, Florida on Saturday. The final will be played on Sunday at MetLife Stadium near New York City.

Oyarzabal scored his fifth goal in the current edition

Talking about the match, Spain took the lead in the 23rd minute, when Lucas Digne fouled Lamine Yamal inside the box and the referee signaled a penalty kick without any hesitation. Mikel Oyarzabal gave ‘La Roja’ (Spain’s team) the lead by sending the ball into the right corner of the net. French goalkeeper Mike Maignan guessed the right direction, but Oyarzabal’s shot was well above the reach of his dive. This was Oyarzabal’s fifth goal of the current World Cup.

Pedro Porro doubled the lead after halftime

After this, in the 58th minute, Pedro Porro made the score 2-0. He played a quick ‘one-two’ pass with Dani Olmo on the right edge of the area. The Tottenham full-back handled the pass well, stepped forward and fired a powerful shot past Maignan. Earlier, Kylian Mbappe had a good chance to give France the lead, but while trying to pass from above, he misjudged and the ball went out.

The French team, which was trying to play its third consecutive final after winning the title for the second time in 2018 and losing to Argentina in the penalty shoot-out four years ago (2022), applied strong pressure after this, but it did not succeed. The team suffered another blow when William Saliba had to leave the field due to injury.

Second semi-final between champion Argentina and England today

Spain, which has won the World Cup only once (2010) so far, will now face the winner of the second semi-final between defending champions Argentina and England to be played in Atlanta on Wednesday in the final to be held in East Rutherford, New Jersey on Sunday.