Statistics paint a dominant victory for Spain in the semi-final

Spain asserted its dominance and delivered a ruthless response to anyone who had placed them behind France among the contenders for the 2026 World Cup title, inflicting a painful defeat on the French as they advanced to the final match. The Spanish national team reaffirmed that the semi-final is their favorite stage, where they master the details, while France endured the bitterness of a mental block that has increasingly haunted them in this advanced stage, particularly against Spain.

Throughout its history, Spain has played 13 semi-finals in major tournaments, including the World Cup, the European Championship, and the UEFA Nations League, successfully reaching the final on 11 occasions—a success rate exceeding 84 percent.

Specifically in the World Cup, Spain reached the semi-finals in 2010 and 2026, securing qualification for the final on both occasions. Manager Luis de la Fuente has coached Spain in three major tournament semi-finals, winning all of them with a 100 percent success rate.

In contrast, French manager Didier Deschante has suffered his third consecutive semi-final defeat, all against Spain, within just two years. The losses began in Euro 2024 (1-2), followed by the UEFA Nations League (4-5), and culminated in the shock of the 2026 World Cup.

Prior to this encounter, France had successfully navigated the World Cup semi-finals in each of its last three appearances in that stage (2006, 2018, and 2022). Spain put an end to this golden streak for the Les Bleus, demonstrating their near-constant superiority in the semi-final round.