{"id":10603,"date":"2026-07-19T14:24:29","date_gmt":"2026-07-19T09:24:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=10603"},"modified":"2026-07-19T14:24:29","modified_gmt":"2026-07-19T09:24:29","slug":"spain-vs-argentina-what-to-know-about-the-world-cup-final-teams-players-and-records","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=10603","title":{"rendered":"Spain vs. Argentina: What to know about the World Cup final teams, players and records"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<p>As <span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/spain-beats-france-world-cup-final\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">Spain<\/a><\/span> and <span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/argentina-beats-england-world-cup-final\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">Argentina<\/a><\/span> head into the 2026 men&#8217;s <span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/biggest-2026-fifa-world-cup-stories\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">World Cup final<\/a><\/span> at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on Sunday, soccer fans have already experienced heartbreak, pure joy and\u00a0<span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/fifa-infantino-trump-red-card-folarin-balogun-criticism\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">controversy<\/a><\/span> during the historic 39-day tournament. \u00a0<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/world-cup-2026-schedule-how-to-watch\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">Forty-eight nations<\/a><\/span> competed in the largest FIFA World Cup in history and two are left standing, with Spain in search of its second World Cup title and Argentina shooting for\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/revisiting-2022-world-cup-final-argentina-france\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">back-to-back<\/a> championships.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Spain came into the tournament as the favorite,&#8221; Paul Tenorio of The Athletic told CBS News. &#8220;This is a team that now is riding a 37-game unbeaten streak going into the finals.&#8221; But on the other side, he said, &#8220;Argentina is Argentina. They&#8217;ve won three consecutive international tournaments going into this World Cup, and they&#8217;ve done it with the best player of all time, [Lionel] <span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/texas\/news\/lionel-messi-record-goal-fifa-world-cup-dallas-stadium\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">Messi<\/a><\/span> being kind of the heartbeat of the team. You can tell that the Argentina players are playing for Messi.&#8221;\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Here&#8217;s what to know about the World Cup final teams, players and their records so far:\u00a0<\/p>\n<h2>Spain looks for its 2nd World Cup title<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"embed embed--type-image is-image embed--float-none embed--size-medium\">\n<p>      <span class=\"img embed__content \"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets2.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2026\/07\/15\/40102ac2-d851-469b-a32a-d5770d5d723c\/thumbnail\/620x414\/074d354f20add73bd865d11ad462825d\/gettyimages-2285589718.jpg#\" alt=\"Spain v Belgium: Quarter Final - FIFA World Cup 2026 \" height=\"414\" width=\"620\" class=\" lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/assets2.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2026\/07\/15\/40102ac2-d851-469b-a32a-d5770d5d723c\/thumbnail\/620x414\/074d354f20add73bd865d11ad462825d\/gettyimages-2285589718.jpg 1x, https:\/\/assets2.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2026\/07\/15\/40102ac2-d851-469b-a32a-d5770d5d723c\/thumbnail\/1240x828\/3a179b8e1a635877f20ad3295c161422\/gettyimages-2285589718.jpg 2x\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/span><figcaption class=\"embed__caption-container\">\n<p>                  <span class=\"embed__caption\">Spain&#8217;s starters pose for a team photo before the FIFA World Cup 2026 quarterfinal match against Belgium at Los Angeles Stadium on July 10, 2026.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                  <span class=\"embed__credit\"><\/p>\n<p>                Liza Rosales\/ISI Photos\/ISI Photos via Getty Images<\/p>\n<p>                          <\/span><br \/>\n              <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Despite being one of Europe&#8217;s top teams, the first and only time <span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/world-cup-final-why-spain-has-to-worry-about-the-dutch-octopus\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">La Roja<\/a><\/span> lifted the World Cup trophy was on July 11, 2010, in Johannesburg, South Africa, after a team of superstar Spanish players defeated the Netherlands 1-0.<\/p>\n<p>Spain is one of just two teams ever to lose its World Cup opening match and go on to win the title \u2014 the other, ironically, being Argentina. It is also the first European nation to win a World Cup played outside Europe.<\/p>\n<p>Without the likes of <span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/shakira-and-soccer-star-gerard-pique-announce-split-after-11-years\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">Gerard Piqu\u00e9<\/a><\/span>, Sergio Ramos and <span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/iker-casillas-heart-attack-fc-porto-goalkeeper-rushed-to-hospital-today-2019-05-01\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">Iker Casillas<\/a><\/span>, Spain&#8217;s lineup at the 2026 World Cup signifies a passing of the torch to a new generation.<\/p>\n<p>Coach Luis de la Fuente took over the reins of Spain&#8217;s national team after Luis Enrique exited following Spain&#8217;s disappointing World Cup round of 16 exit in Qatar in 2022.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>De la Fuente chose several young players for his World Cup roster, including 19-year-old Pau Cubarsi and 21-year-old Dean Huijsen, some of whom he worked with when he was in charge of the U-19s and U-21s.<\/p>\n<p>At just 19 years old, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/spanish-soccer-star-lamine-yamal-the-face-of-the-new-spain-60-minutes\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">Lamine Yamal<\/a> has been one of Spain&#8217;s breakout stars. He helped lead the team to the <span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/spain-beats-england-2024-european-championship\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">2024 Euro title<\/a><\/span>, and Spain&#8217;s World Cup squad includes 15 other players from the Euro roster.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I think that I have very high expectations,&#8221; Yamal told CBS News&#8217; Jon Wertheim in a <span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/spanish-soccer-sensation-lamine-yamal-reflects-on-roots-rise-to-the-top-60-minutes-transcript\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">&#8220;60 Minutes&#8221; interview<\/a><\/span> last year. &#8220;I think it&#8217;s been a long time since Spain was a serious contender to win the World Cup. I see that the country is excited. I am very excited\u2026. I feel good. I&#8217;m really looking forward to it, and I&#8217;m going to enjoy it a lot.&#8221;<\/p>\n<figure class=\"embed embed--type-image is-image embed--float-none embed--size-medium\">\n<p>      <span class=\"img embed__content \"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets2.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2026\/07\/15\/e089453e-db23-4860-8c48-0c65307447e7\/thumbnail\/620x413\/c0ed6e3ef6a9ee03537b11471cb0265c\/gettyimages-2285591115.jpg#\" alt=\"France vs Spain, 2026 FIFA World Cup \" height=\"413\" width=\"620\" class=\" lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/assets2.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2026\/07\/15\/e089453e-db23-4860-8c48-0c65307447e7\/thumbnail\/620x413\/c0ed6e3ef6a9ee03537b11471cb0265c\/gettyimages-2285591115.jpg 1x, https:\/\/assets3.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2026\/07\/15\/e089453e-db23-4860-8c48-0c65307447e7\/thumbnail\/1240x826\/86678af06d6526a32ea0dd64c7a0cc6b\/gettyimages-2285591115.jpg 2x\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/span><figcaption class=\"embed__caption-container\">\n<p>                  <span class=\"embed__caption\">Spain&#8217;s Lamine Yamal during the semifinal match against France at Dallas Stadium in Texas on July 14, 2026.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                  <span class=\"embed__credit\"><\/p>\n<p>                Erick W. Rasco\/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images<\/p>\n<p>                          <\/span><br \/>\n              <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Spain is entering the final with a 37-match unbeaten run in regulation time, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CBSSportsGolazo\/posts\/spain-could-break-the-record-for-longest-international-unbeaten-streak-in-world-\/1720916713374680\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">matching Italy&#8217;s all-time world record<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>In its seven World Cup matches before the final, Spain has conceded only one goal, <span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/video\/spain-beats-belgium-to-secure-spot-in-fifa-world-cup-semifinals\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">against Belgium<\/a><\/span> (2-1) in its quarterfinal. Goalkeeper Unai Sim\u00f3n had kept a clean sheet for a record 650 minutes, the longest scoreless streak at the tournament.<\/p>\n<p>Another player to watch is 29-year-old Mikel Oyarzabal, who has netted five goals since the start of the World Cup and matched David Villa&#8217;s record for the most goals scored by a Spaniard in a single tournament.<\/p>\n<p>Oyarzabal and Yamal are neck and neck in their attempts on goal at the World Cup, with 22 and 23 attempts, respectively. But Spain&#8217;s defense has a lot of work to do against Argentina&#8217;s superstar Lionel Messi.<\/p>\n<h2>Back-to-back World Cup victory on the line for Argentina<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"embed embed--type-image is-image embed--float-none embed--size-medium\">\n<p>      <span class=\"img embed__content \"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2026\/07\/15\/c1cd9385-726c-49a8-9383-d9a82586ca7c\/thumbnail\/620x406\/aa993259d142e9bb5f34058472bf9f7a\/gettyimages-2285792107.jpg#\" alt=\"Argentina v Switzerland: Quarter Final - FIFA World Cup 2026 \" height=\"406\" width=\"620\" class=\" lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2026\/07\/15\/c1cd9385-726c-49a8-9383-d9a82586ca7c\/thumbnail\/620x406\/aa993259d142e9bb5f34058472bf9f7a\/gettyimages-2285792107.jpg 1x, https:\/\/assets2.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2026\/07\/15\/c1cd9385-726c-49a8-9383-d9a82586ca7c\/thumbnail\/1240x812\/a2d23a3283e2f7c8b5e125f80c12cad9\/gettyimages-2285792107.jpg 2x\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/span><figcaption class=\"embed__caption-container\">\n<p>                  <span class=\"embed__caption\">Argentina&#8217;s starters pose for a photo before the FIFA World Cup 2026 quarterfinal match against Switzerland at Kansas City Stadium on July 11, 2026.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                  <span class=\"embed__credit\"><\/p>\n<p>                Fernando Leon\/ISI Photos\/ISI Photos via Getty Images<\/p>\n<p>                          <\/span><br \/>\n              <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Coming into the World Cup as the defending champions, La Albiceleste are looking to become the first team to win back-to-back titles since Brazil achieved the rare feat in 1958 and 1962. The only other nation to have done so is Italy in 1934 and 1938.<\/p>\n<p>With Messi leading the charge, Argentina&#8217;s victory over France at the World Cup final in Qatar gave the team its third title and ended a 36-year drought.<\/p>\n<p>During this year&#8217;s tournament, Messi further cemented his legacy by becoming the all-time leading scorer in men&#8217;s World Cup history. The 39-year-old has scored 21 goals across six World Cup tournaments, and he&#8217;s currently tied with Kylian Mbapp\u00e9 as the leading scorer in this tournament with eight goals. The No. 10 also has the most attempts on goal, 34, at the tournament.<\/p>\n<p>Messi also holds the record for the most FIFA World Cup appearances, with 32 matches. He is one of only two players, the other being Portugal&#8217;s Cristiano Ronaldo, to play in six World Cups.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"embed embed--type-image is-image embed--float-none embed--size-medium\">\n<p>      <span class=\"img embed__content \"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2026\/07\/15\/ffacb626-71dc-4db0-a30e-0062d7cec57e\/thumbnail\/620x413g2\/3b3cbf9858e46b75699e6a25aae8f7ec\/gettyimages-2285635909.jpg#\" alt=\"Argentina's forward #10 Lionel Messi \" height=\"413\" width=\"620\" class=\" lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2026\/07\/15\/ffacb626-71dc-4db0-a30e-0062d7cec57e\/thumbnail\/620x413g2\/3b3cbf9858e46b75699e6a25aae8f7ec\/gettyimages-2285635909.jpg 1x, https:\/\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2026\/07\/15\/ffacb626-71dc-4db0-a30e-0062d7cec57e\/thumbnail\/1240x826g2\/e79c26cf4596bc06703039afd6cb6076\/gettyimages-2285635909.jpg 2x\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/span><figcaption class=\"embed__caption-container\">\n<p>                  <span class=\"embed__caption\">Argentina&#8217;s forward #10 Lionel Messi reacts during the 2026 World Cup semifinal match against England in Atlanta on July 15, 2026.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                  <span class=\"embed__credit\"><\/p>\n<p>                ROBERTO SCHMIDT \/AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n<p>                          <\/span><br \/>\n              <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Another player to watch is Enzo Fern\u00e1ndez. In 2022, the then-21-year-old became the youngest Argentinian to score a goal for Argentina at the World Cup since Messi, who was 18 at the time. In the\u00a0<span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/argentina-beats-england-world-cup-final\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">semifinal against England<\/a><\/span>, Fern\u00e1ndez scored a masterful equalizer on a pass from Messi.<\/p>\n<p>Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni left out nine players from the 2022 winning squad and added several fresh faces who could help support Messi while protecting the defensive line, including Julian Alvarez and Lautaro Martinez.<\/p>\n<p>It was Martinez who headed in a goal on a pass from Messi in the semifinal to give Argentina the stoppage-time win it needed to advance into the final. Argentina is making its seventh World Cup final appearance.<\/p>\n<p>Goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez is regarded as one of the best keepers in the world, known for his distraction tactics and intimidating opponents, and he&#8217;s returned to the World Cup final as the reigning Golden Glove winner. Martinez is also the only goalkeeper to win the Best FIFA Goalkeeper twice, in 2022 and 2024.<\/p>\n<section class=\"content__body--footer\">\n<p class=\"content__meta--contributors\">\n<p>                      <span class=\"byline__author__text\">Elizabeth  Campbell<\/span><\/p>\n<p>        contributed to this report.\n    <\/p>\n<\/section>\n<p>  <!-- data-recirc-source=\"chartbeat\" --><\/p>\n<aside class=\"component list recirculation component--type-recirculation  component--type-recirculation-collection\">\n<\/aside>\n<section class=\"content__body--footer\">\n      <!-- tags --><\/p>\n<section class=\"content__tags\">\n<p class=\"content__tags__label\">In:<\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/section><\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As Spain and Argentina head into the 2026 men&#8217;s World Cup final at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on Sunday, soccer fans have already experienced heartbreak, pure joy and\u00a0controversy during the historic 39-day tournament. \u00a0 Forty-eight nations competed in the largest FIFA World Cup in history and two are left standing, with Spain in search&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10604,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/assets2.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2026\/07\/15\/de86f5f2-b273-41af-acc8-8e946f6674eb\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/da5eeebdf528ca0f4d75d885db2fe248\/spain-argentina-world-cup-final.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10603","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pics-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10603","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10603"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10603\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/10604"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10603"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10603"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10603"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}