Spain beat France 2-0 to reach World Cup final
Spain secured a 2-0 victory over a subdued France to reach the World Cup final, extending a 37-match unbeaten run that cements their status as the continent's dominant force while bringing an end to Didier Deschamps' 14-year reign as French manager.
Spain defeated France 2-0 in Dallas to reach the World Cup final. Mikel Oyarzabal converted a first-half penalty after Lucas Digne kicked Lamine Yamal, and Pedro Porro doubled the lead after a slick exchange with Dani Olmo. In front of 70,176 fans, France managed just two shots without forcing a save.
The result extends Spain's unbeaten run to 37 matches across all competitions, equalling the European record. Having also eliminated France at the Euro 2024 semi-final stage and the 2025 Nations League semi-finals, Luis de la Fuente's side have established a clear psychological and tactical dominance over their biggest continental rival. They will face either England or Argentina in Sunday's final in New York/New Jersey.
For France, the defeat marks a sudden and underwhelming conclusion to Didier Deschamps' 14-year tenure as manager. Despite boasting the tournament's joint-top scorer in Kylian Mbappe and top assist-maker Michael Olise, the attack never functioned. Olise was substituted in the 72nd minute having created only two chances, while defender William Saliba was forced off with an earlier injury.
The loss on Bastille Day denied French fans any celebration and condemned the squad to a Saturday third-place play-off. Deschamps admitted his side fell short when it mattered most.
"The players are devastated because we had high ambitions, even though we have to admit that today we were a notch below our usual level technically, facing a team that really had a handle on the game," Deschamps said. "It's primarily our own fault. We fell short and weren't as dangerous in attack as we could have been, making a few technical errors on passes that might have led to scoring chances. That's the reality of the elite level, even if it hurts."
Spain, who won the European championship last summer, are now one match away from repeating the international double they achieved in 2010. De la Fuente credited his squad's sustained commitment to their tactical identity.
"We started almost four years ago with an idea and we've been faithful to that idea and it's brought us here," he said. "Today we faced one of the best national teams in the world, but in front of them they had the best team in the world. That is different."
