Spain and Argentina meet in World Cup final as Yamal photo resurfaces

Spain will face Argentina in the 2026 World Cup final at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on Sunday. It is the first final between two Spanish-speaking nations since 1930. Spain reached the match by beating France 2-0, with Mikel Oyarzabal converting a penalty after a foul on Lamine Yamal and Pedro Porro adding a second.

Argentina endured a tougher path, coming from behind to beat England 2-1. Anthony Gordon opened the scoring before Enzo Fernández equalised in the 85th minute. Lautaro Martínez then scored the winner in added time.

The fixture underscores the sustained success of Barcelona’s La Masia academy as a European talent pipeline. Both Messi and Yamal are products of the system that also produced Xavi, Andrés Iniesta and Carles Puyol. Messi joined in 2000 and debuted at 17, while Yamal entered at seven and debuted at 15 as the youngest Barça player of the 21st century, eventually inheriting Messi’s number 10 shirt.

A 19-year prophecy

The matchup carries an extraordinary historical footnote. In 2007, a five-month-old Yamal was bathed by a 20-year-old Messi during a photoshoot for a UNICEF charity calendar. Photographer Joan Monfort took the picture in the Camp Nou dressing room after Yamal’s family, from the Rocafonda neighbourhood of Mataró, was selected by lottery for the event organised by the FC Barcelona Foundation and newspaper Sport.

The image, used for January in the 2008 calendar, remained dormant for almost two decades. Now, the two players meet with contrasting stakes. Messi, who turned 39 during the tournament, is looking to defend his 2022 title in his third final, while Yamal, who turned 19 on 13 July, is playing in his first.

Shown the photograph by DAZN, Yamal remarked: “I have grown a little, and Leo has too”. He added that he had long awaited a meeting that previous fixtures like the Finalissima had not provided.