Spain Lift 2026 World Cup, Beat Argentina 1-0 In Extra Time
EAST RUTHERFORD: Spain emerged as the 2026 World Cup champions after defeating defending champions Argentina 1-0 in extra time in the final held at the New York New Jersey Stadium on Sunday.
Ferran Torres emerged as Spain’s hero when he scored the winning goal in the 106th minute to hand La Roja their second world title, following their first success in the 2010 edition in South Africa.
The victory also ended Argentina’s dream of defending the title they won in 2022, besides denying Lionel Messi’s wish to close his World Cup campaign with another world trophy.
After a tight goalless stalemate throughout the 90 minutes of regulation time, Spain finally broke the deadlock in the second half of extra time when Nico Williams created an opportunity for Torres to finish past Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez.
Spain dominated large parts of the game and kept pressing the Argentine defence, but Martinez made several crucial saves to keep his goal intact. The goalkeeper recorded 11 saves, a new record for a World Cup final.
Argentina were forced to play with 10 men after Enzo Fernandez was shown a red card at the end of regulation time for receiving a second yellow card.
Throughout the match, Spain dominated possession and goal-scoring opportunities, while Argentina failed to pose a consistent threat to the opposition goal as the Spanish defence displayed high discipline.
The success capped off a brilliant campaign for Luis de la Fuente’s side, who went through the tournament unbeaten and conceded only one goal throughout the 2026 World Cup.
This final also made history as it was the first World Cup final to feature a Super Bowl-style halftime show, with performances by international artists including Madonna, BTS, Justin Bieber and Shakira.
Astro Awani