{"id":574701,"date":"2026-08-04T17:32:12","date_gmt":"2026-08-04T17:32:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/574701\/"},"modified":"2026-08-04T17:32:12","modified_gmt":"2026-08-04T17:32:12","slug":"ferran-torres-on-world-cup-winning-goal-it-was-the-best-moment-in-my-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/574701\/","title":{"rendered":"Ferran Torres on World Cup-winning goal: \u2018It was the best moment in my life\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n More than 1,200 players<\/a> represented their countries at the 2026 FIFA World Cup<\/a>, and among those, perhaps none will remember the tournament more fondly than Spain forward Ferran Torres.\n <\/p>\n

\n Every kid who falls in love with the Beautiful Game dreams of scoring the winning goal in a World Cup final when kicking a ball around in their backyards, and last month at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, Torres realized that dream.\n <\/p>\n

\n His clinical strike in the 106th minute against Argentina secured a historic 1-0 win<\/a> and saw Spain crowned world champion for just the second time<\/a>, forever etching his name in his nation\u2019s sporting history.\n <\/p>\n

\n Even now, the 26-year-old is still trying to process the events of July 19: \u201cHonestly, I can\u2019t believe it,\u201d he said on CNN\u2019s The Source<\/a>.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cWhen I finished the game, I just (headed) to the dressing room because I didn\u2019t remember how I scored and I needed to see to see it again.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cIt was a dream come true to score this goal and winning the World Cup \u2013 it was the best moment in my life.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n It\u2019s easy to forget that Torres\u2019 tournament got off to a stuttered start.\n <\/p>\n

\n Hamstring injuries to Lamine Yamal<\/a> and Nico Williams \u2013 both key figures during Spain\u2019s 2024 European Championship-winning campaign \u2013 handed Torres a golden opportunity to make his mark in the starting 11 against Cape Verde<\/a> in La Roja\u2019s opening match.\n <\/p>\n

\n But Luis de la Fuente\u2019s side was held to a shock 0-0 draw<\/a> as the World Cup debutant frustrated the European champion, largely thanks to a heroic performance from 40-year-old goalkeeper Vozinha<\/a>.\n <\/p>\n

\n Torres also endured a frustrating afternoon of his own and wasted a golden opportunity to put Spain ahead five minutes before halftime, hitting the crossbar from just five yards out after Marc Cucurella\u2019s header across the box gifted him a chance that seemed difficult to miss.\n <\/p>\n

\n The 26-year-old subsequently lost his place in the starting 11 when Yamal returned against Saudi Arabia in La Roja\u2019s next match, and for the remainder of the tournament, he had to make his mark from the bench.\n <\/p>\n

\n But make his mark he certainly did.\n <\/p>\n

\"22863563<\/p>\n

Ferran Torres explains why he wore MAGA-inspired hat at World Cup parade\n <\/p>\n

Spanish soccer star Ferran Torres tells CNN’s Kaitlan Collins what it felt like to kick Spain’s game-winning goal in the World Cup and why he wore a MAGA-inspired “Make Spain Great Again” hat.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Ferran Torres explains why he wore MAGA-inspired hat at World Cup parade<\/p>\n

0:49<\/p>\n

\n In a marquee clash in the Round of 16 against Portugal, it was the Barcelona forward who slipped a ball through to Arsenal midfielder Mikel Merino to score in the 91st minute, ending Cristiano Ronaldo\u2019s World Cup dreams in the process.\n <\/p>\n

\n Then came the defining moment of his career in the final, showing remarkable composure to fire in Williams\u2019 headed back pass with his weaker left foot to stun the largely pro-Argentina crowd and send almost 50 million Spaniards around the world into absolute bedlam.\n <\/p>\n

\"Torres,<\/p>\n

\n It is a moment no one will ever be able to take away from him, and one that will undoubtedly change his life forever: \u201cI can feel that the people recognize me more often,\u201d he told CNN.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cI feel inside the same person, but it\u2019s kind of not, and I feel it. It made me very proud because every kid when he\u2019s young (dreams) about this moment \u2013 it was special.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cIt\u2019s (a) different feeling. If you don\u2019t score this goal, you cannot feel it. It just gets crazy and I just ran to celebrate with my teammates. It was an unbelievable moment.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n If things involving FIFA and UEFA return to normal<\/a> before then, Spain will defend the World Cup on home soil in 2030 when it co-hosts the tournament alongside Portugal and Morocco, with the first three matches being played in Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay to mark the 100th anniversary of the inaugural edition in Uruguay in 1930.\n <\/p>\n

\n And for Torres, that means an opportunity to join an illustrious list of players to win back-to-back World Cups. \u201cI have one, (but) I want another one\u2026 I want it,\u201d he said with a smile.\n <\/p>\n

\n The Barcelona forward will still be only 30 when the next edition begins, meaning he will likely still be a key player for his country.\n <\/p>\n

\"Torres<\/p>\n

\n La Roja\u2019s exciting young core will be entering its prime years, as teenage stars Yamal and Pau Cubars\u00ed \u2013 who was named Young Player of the Tournament \u2013 will still be in their early 20s and more talent is set to join the national side.\n <\/p>\n

\n So it certainly doesn\u2019t seem far-fetched that Spain could become just the third nation after Italy in 1934 and 1938, and Brazil in 1958 and 1962, to retain the World Cup.\n <\/p>\n

\n However, there are still a few years until Torres and his teammates turn their attention to a title defense.\n <\/p>\n

\n For now, the 26-year-old is enjoying some well-deserved time off in New York, where he will be swapping a soccer ball for a baseball when he throws out the ceremonial first pitch at Yankee Stadium<\/a> on Tuesday night.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cIt\u2019s going to be my first (baseball) game, so I\u2019m very excited,\u201d he said.\n <\/p>\n

\n But despite scoring the biggest and most important goal in global soccer\u2019s showpiece event, throwing the first pitch at Yankee Stadium is still nerve-wracking even for one of the game\u2019s biggest stars.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201c(I) feel more nervous than even the World Cup final,\u201d he joked. \u201cEveryone is going to stay there watching me, and I never did a throw, so let\u2019s see what happens.\u201d\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"More than 1,200 players represented their countries at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and among those, perhaps none…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":574702,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[85,46,105],"class_list":["post-574701","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/574701","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=574701"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/574701\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/574702"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=574701"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=574701"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=574701"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}