Spain booked their place in the 2026 FIFA World Cup final with an impressive 2 to 0 victory over France on Tuesday, ending Les Bleus’ hopes of reaching a third consecutive World Cup final and moving within one win of football history. The European champions delivered a disciplined display at Dallas Stadium in Arlington, Texas, combining defensive solidity with clinical finishing to outclass a France side that entered the semi final as one of the tournament favourites. Spain will now face either England or Argentina in Sunday’s final as they chase their second World Cup title after lifting the trophy in 2010. Oyarzabal and Porro seal dominant Spanish win The match turned in Spain’s favour midway through the first half when Salvadoran referee Ivan Barton awarded a penalty after France left back Lucas Digne brought down teenage winger Lamine Yamal inside the box. Mikel Oyarzabal calmly fired the penalty past goalkeeper Mike Maignan for his fifth goal of the tournament, giving Spain a deserved lead after controlling possession and limiting France’s attacking threats. France’s problems deepened moments later when defender William Saliba left the pitch with a recurrence of his lower back injury. Maxence Lacroix replaced the Arsenal centre back, forcing coach Didier Deschamps into an early defensive reshuffle. Spain continued to dominate through Rodri, Fabian Ruiz and Dani Olmo, who repeatedly found space in midfield. France failed to register a single shot on target in the opening half and managed only two attempts before the break. Deschamps introduced Desire Doue in the 57th minute to inject pace into the attack, but Spain struck again just a minute later. Pedro Porro exchanged a quick pass with Dani Olmo before calmly finishing past Maignan to double Spain’s advantage. The French coach responded by bringing on Theo Hernandez and Rayan Cherki after the second hydration break, but Spain’s organised defence refused to give France a route back into the contest. Spain have now conceded only one goal throughout the tournament while keeping six clean sheets in seven matches. Their unbeaten run has stretched to 37 games under coach Luis de la Fuente, equalling Italy’s long standing European record. France left to fight for third place The defeat ended France’s pursuit of a third World Cup title and another appearance in the final after winning the 2018 tournament in Russia and finishing runners up to Argentina in Qatar four years later. Despite boasting stars such as Kylian Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele and Michael Olise, France struggled to create clear chances against Spain’s disciplined defence. After the match, France captain Mbappe admitted his side fell short. He said, “We didn’t play the match we wanted to, neither tactically, nor technically, nor in terms of our overall performance.” France will now play in the third place playoff, the final match in charge for Didier Deschamps before he steps down after 14 years as head coach. Attention now shifts to Wednesday’s second semi final in Atlanta, where England and Argentina will battle for the remaining place in the final. England captain Harry Kane dismissed suggestions that history would influence the clash. He said, “From a player’s point of view it’s us against a great team, who are smart, who are tactical, who know how to buy fouls, know how to slow the game down, like many different teams you come up against throughout your whole career.” The winner will meet an in form Spain side that now stands just 90 minutes away from becoming the first champions of the expanded 48 team FIFA World Cup.