Spain 2-0 France: La Roja Reaches the Final, and the Golden Boot Race Just Changed Forever
France
SpainSpain's unbeaten run through the 2026 World Cup reached its natural conclusion at AT&T Stadium: a 2-0 win over France that sends La Roja into the Final. Mikel Oyarzabal's first-half penalty and a well-worked second-half goal from Pedro Porro did the damage on the scoreboard — but the result also quietly rewrote the tournament's Golden Boot race, freezing Kylian Mbappe's tally for good just as Lionel Messi prepares to play on.
Oyarzabal's Penalty Breaks the Deadlock
France were reduced to defending for long stretches from early on, with Adrien Rabiot picking up a yellow card inside the first ten minutes as the game's physical tone was set early. Spain made the pressure count in the 22nd minute, when Mikel Oyarzabal converted from the penalty spot to give La Roja the lead they would not relinquish.
The penalty capped a spell of sustained Spanish control — by full time, Spain had completed 428 accurate passes to France's 395, a reflection of a semifinal that Spain dominated territorially even as the scoreline stayed tight for long periods.
Porro's Second Seals It
France introduced Willam Saliba just past the half-hour mark to shore up the defence, and the switch briefly steadied the French backline. It did not last: in the 58th minute, Pedro Porro finished off a move created by Dani Olmo to make it 2-0, a goal that took the game away from France with over half an hour still to play.
France's response never really arrived. Substitutions from Bradley Barcola, Michael Olise, and others failed to generate the sustained pressure needed for a way back into the match, and Kylian Mbappe's booking in the 86th minute — a rare moment of visible frustration — summed up a night that never went France's way.
The Golden Boot Race Just Froze
Buried inside this result is a storyline that will shape the rest of the tournament's individual honours. Kylian Mbappe finishes the 2026 World Cup with 8 goals — level with Lionel Messi at the top of the scoring charts. But where Messi still has at least one more match to play, in Thursday's Semifinal against England, Mbappe's tournament is now over.
That means the Golden Boot race is effectively decided in Messi's favour by default: barring both players finishing level with no further goals from anyone else, Messi has an opportunity Mbappe no longer has. Every additional goal Messi scores against England — or, should Argentina progress, in the Final — pulls him clear of a race Mbappe can no longer influence.
What's Next: Spain Await the Winner of Argentina vs England
Spain advance to the World Cup Final on July 19 at MetLife Stadium, where they will face the winner of the Argentina vs England Semifinal on July 15. Unbeaten throughout the tournament and yet to concede a goal in open play, Spain arrive as deserved favourites for the title — but a final against either Messi's Argentina or Jude Bellingham's England will be no formality.
5 Numbers That Tell the Story
1. Spain out-passed France 428 to 395, reflecting their territorial control of the semifinal.
2. Mikel Oyarzabal's 22nd-minute penalty was Spain's only shot on target of the first half that counted.
3. Kylian Mbappe finishes the tournament on 8 goals — level with Messi, but with no more matches left to add to it.
4. Spain have not lost a single match at the 2026 World Cup.
5. Spain reach their first World Cup Final since 2010, and will face the winner of Argentina vs England on July 19.