{"id":813218,"date":"2026-07-20T01:16:10","date_gmt":"2026-07-20T01:16:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/813218\/"},"modified":"2026-07-20T01:16:10","modified_gmt":"2026-07-20T01:16:10","slug":"spain-outclasses-10-man-argentina-1-0-in-extra-time-of-world-cup-final","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/813218\/","title":{"rendered":"Spain outclasses 10-man Argentina 1-0 in extra time of World Cup final"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ferran Torres\u2019s first goal of this year\u2019s World Cup<\/a> was the goal of his life, and it put Spain back atop the soccer world.<\/p>\n

Denying Lionel Messi a second straight title in what he has indicated would be his final World Cup match, Torres came off the bench and scored in the 106th minute and Spain \u2013 in a match it simply dominated \u2013 ended Argentina\u2019s reign with a 1-0 win on Sunday.<\/p>\n

Torres pounced on a bouncing ball in the box and used his left foot to bury a shot just under the crossbar and into the back of the net.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a goal scored by 47 million people,\u201d Torres said, referring to Spain\u2019s population.<\/p>\n

Maybe not by them \u2013 but certainly for them.<\/p>\n

It was Spain\u2019s second title, this trophy getting added to the one claimed in 2010. And there\u2019s no question about the centre of the soccer universe now, not after this display.<\/p>\n

Spain allowed only one goal in eight matches at the tournament, setting a World Cup record for fewest goals allowed by a champion. And this title, combined with the World Cup won by Spain\u2019s women in 2023, makes the European nation the first to hold both the men\u2019s and women\u2019s titles simultaneously.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel sad,\u201d said Messi, who was moved to tears after receiving his runner-up medal and staring into the crowd at Argentina supporters. \u201cThey were better, to be honest.\u201d<\/p>\n

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Spain’s forward Ferran Torres (7) celebrates scoring the game-winning goal during the 2026 World Cup final against Argentina at the New York\/New Jersey Stadium on Sunday.FRANCK FIFE\/AFP\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

The score indicates this match was close, but only one team was in command.<\/p>\n

Spain took the game\u2019s first 20 shots on goal before Argentina \u2013 desperate for an equalizer \u2013 got its first attempt off in the second half of extra time. Spain took nine of the game\u2019s first 10 corner kicks, and only a World Cup final-record 12 saves by Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez gave the 2022 champions a shot at going back-to-back.<\/p>\n

Spain is now unbeaten in its last 38 matches \u2013 29 wins, nine draws \u2013 and now is the outright holder of the longest such streak by any European team ever. Italy went 37 matches (28 wins, nine draws) from October 2018 through September 2021, before Spain ended that streak.<\/p>\n

And for the last two-plus years, nobody has beaten Spain. Not even Messi. An Argentina team that was the kings of the late-game rally in this tournament had no answer this time.<\/p>\n

Messi took a corner kick with about four minutes left before the final whistle and the ball took a fortunate skip toward reserve Giuliano Simeone \u2013 who sent it high and over the crossbar, holding his head in disbelief afterward.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you have Messi on the other side, well, you are nervous,\u201d Torres said. \u201cAt the end of the day, we always depended on us. We always come up with our football, and we showed it again.\u201d<\/p>\n

The win made Spain coach Luis de la Fuente, at 65, the oldest coach ever to lead a team to the World Cup title.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are world champions,\u201d de la Fuente said. \u201cIt was together we reached this stage.\u201d<\/p>\n

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Argentina’s Lionel Messi looks dejected as he shakes hands with Torres after the match. This is most likely Messi’s last World Cup tournament playing for his country.Lee Smith\/Reuters<\/p>\n

There was some pushing and shoving after the final whistle, which was quickly cleaned up and Spain commenced its celebration as most Argentina players sat on the turf in disbelief. Cooler heads prevailed, and Spain\u2019s players lined up minutes later to form an honour guard of sorts for Argentina\u2019s squad to walk through on its way to the stage for the runner-up medals.<\/p>\n

Enzo Fern\u00e1ndez was sent off in second-half stoppage time after getting his second yellow card, meaning Argentina was forced to finish the match with only 10 players. Fern\u00e1ndez was carded for a reckless play that sent Spain defender Pau Cubars\u00ed cartwheeling into the air, and the card came out immediately.<\/p>\n

It was the 104th and last match of the biggest World Cup ever, a 48-team event that played out over the U.S., Canada and Mexico. Because there were more matches than any previous World Cup, it was no surprise that there were more goals than all other editions \u2013 more than 300, nearly three per match.<\/p>\n

Except, of course, when Spain was involved. Spain\u2019s plan was simple and flawless: Hold the ball as much as possible, denying opponents any hint of chances.<\/p>\n

It worked, all the way to the end.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is sadness, but also the knowledge that we gave it our all,\u201d Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni said. \u201cI could say a lot about how we got here, but it\u2019s not worth it. I am eternally grateful to these guys; they competed right to the end. The other team was better.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cathal Kelly: The winners and losers of this year\u2019s World Cup on and off the pitch<\/a><\/p>\n

Spain came into this tournament considered as one of the favourites, and with the full belief it could end Argentina\u2019s reign.<\/p>\n

It had to go through the game\u2019s greatest player \u2013 maybe ever \u2013 to make good on that promise.<\/p>\n

Messi is 39 and the math certainly suggests that the Inter Miami star is at the end of his international career. There have been hints \u2013 such as Messi himself declaring that a home World Cup qualifying match against Venezuela last year would be his final competitive contest for Argentina on his nation\u2019s soil.<\/p>\n

\u201cI experienced a lot of things on this pitch, good and not so good,\u201d Messi said that night. \u201cI\u2019ll take the good with me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Argentina’s Lionel Messi reacts after losing to Spain in the World Cup final soccer match Sunday in East Rutherford, N.J.Pamela Smith\/The Associated Press<\/p>\n

In the Messi era, there was a lot of good. A lot of great, actually.<\/p>\n

There was the World Cup title in 2022, obviously topping the list. There was the Olympic gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Games. The two COPA Am\u00e9rica titles, the first in 2021 and the second in 2024. He won Argentina\u2019s player of the year award 16 times in a span of 19 years, first winning it as a teenager and continuing to win it all the way into his late 30s.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s a legend within the game and on all corners of the globe. But Spain was better Sunday.<\/p>\n

\u201cI spoke to my players, and they said: \u2018Look, we\u2019ve won everything, coach. We\u2019ve won everything,\u2019\u201d de la Fuente said. \u201cAnd that is beautiful.\u201d<\/p>\n

Justin Bieber, BTS, Madonna and the Muppets rock the FIFA World Cup halftime show<\/a><\/p>\n

The spectacle was not limited to simply soccer. There was a halftime show, a first for FIFA. There were a ton of celebrities there from stage, screen and sports: Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Matt Damon, Cillian Murphy, Daniel Craig, Stephen Curry, Victor Wembanyama, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Brunson, Kevin Durant, Serena Williams, Carlos Alcaraz, David Beckham, Zinedine Zidane and dozens more.<\/p>\n

They came to see a show. So did 80,000 other people, not to mention perhaps as many as 2 billion watching around the globe.<\/p>\n

Spain didn\u2019t disappoint. No team has won back-to-back men\u2019s World Cups since Brazil in 1958 and 1962, and Spain kept Argentina from pulling off that repeat.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are gracious in victory,\u201d Scaloni said, \u201cand we must be gracious in defeat.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Ferran Torres\u2019s first goal of this year\u2019s World Cup was the goal of his life, and it put…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":813219,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[9335,43,44,41,39,42,40],"class_list":["post-813218","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-aud-url","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/813218","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=813218"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/813218\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/813219"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=813218"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=813218"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=813218"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}