{"id":404952,"date":"2026-07-20T04:18:34","date_gmt":"2026-07-20T04:18:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/404952\/"},"modified":"2026-07-20T04:18:34","modified_gmt":"2026-07-20T04:18:34","slug":"spain-defeats-argentina-in-extra-time-in-thrilling-world-cup-final","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/404952\/","title":{"rendered":"Spain defeats Argentina in extra time in thrilling World Cup final"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J.\u00a0\u2014\u00a0This summer\u2019s World Cup<\/a> was so good, nobody wanted it to end.<\/p>\n

So Spain and Argentina played on and on in Sunday\u2019s final, through 90 minutes of regulation time and then through a 15-minute extra period before Ferran Torres<\/a> gave Spain the only goal it needed to claim the title with a 1-0 victory<\/a> over the defending champion at a sold-out MetLife Stadium.<\/p>\n

It was an epic finish to an epic tournament, one that set records for everything from attendance and TV viewers to games played and goals scored. And it was almost certainly the last World Cup for Argentine captain Lionel Messi<\/a>, 39, who finished his record-setting sixth tournament as the all-time leader in games (34), assists (12) and goal contributions (33).<\/p>\n

His parting gift was a silver medal, a handshake from President Trump and a hug from the King of Spain. But none of those were the prize he wanted most, so when he left the stage after receiving his medal, he broke down in tears.<\/p>\n

A swarming Spanish defense made him little more than a spectator for most of the match. So while Argentina came into the final leading the tournament in goals per game, it also became the first team to go 90 minutes without a shot in a World Cup final. It was outshot 20-2 for the game, and Spanish keeper Unai Sim\u00f3n<\/a>, who gave up just one goal in eight matches, was not forced to make a save in registering his seventh clean sheet. <\/p>\n

He was named the outstanding keeper of the tournament.<\/p>\n

That allowed Torres, who started just once in the tournament, to become the hero.<\/p>\n

\u201cHonestly, I can\u2019t believe it. I just am trying to enjoy it, but I don\u2019t know what\u2019s happening,\u201d Torres said. \u201cI didn\u2019t think too much. I just saw the ball coming to me and I just shot with the power of all the Spanish people.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Spain's <\/p>\n

Spain\u2019s Ferran Torres celebrates after scoring in extra time against Argentina in the World Cup final Sunday.<\/p>\n

(Julio Cortez \/ Associated Press)<\/p>\n

Rodri<\/a>, Spain\u2019s captain and the anchor of the team\u2019s smothering defense during its unbeaten World Cup run, won the Golden Ball award as the outstanding player of the tournament. He was equally stunned.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m in shock,\u201d he said. \u201cI cannot express [my feelings] in words. I\u2019m like in a cloud.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Rodri, who also led Spain to a European Championship two years ago, Sunday\u2019s victory capped a personal two-year struggle to return from a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament he sustained in 2024, a month before he hobbled onstage with crutches to receive the Ballon d\u2019Or award as the world\u2019s best player.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been a really tough time,\u201d said the midfielder, who broke the World Cup record for completed passes in the tournament with 747. \u201cI just want new generations to see my example as an opportunity to when you go down, you can rise again. This is my philosophy my entire life.<\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes things go well, things go wrong. But always the positive.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

Highlights from Spain\u2019s 1-0 win over Argentina in the World Cup final on Sunday.<\/p>\n

The only goal came seconds into the second extra-time period, with defender Pedro Porro sending a long cross to the left post for Nico Williams, who headed it back into the center of the box for Torres, a second-half substitute who buried the left-footed volley that would give Spain its second World Cup title.<\/p>\n

Torres, who entered the game just past the hour mark, is the fifth man to come off the bench and score in a World Cup final and the first since Germany\u2019s Mario Gotze, whose extra-time goal beat Argentina in 2014. Williams, who got the assist, was also a late-game substitute.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are world champions. I am very proud,\u201d Luis de la Fuente, Spain\u2019s coach, said through an interpreter after his team ran its unbeaten streak to a record 38 games.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m very happy for my players. We\u2019ve won in all the categories. We\u2019ve grown together. We reached this stage today thanks to their talent, to their attitude, to their comportment, to their values and to the huge footballing talent.\u201d<\/p>\n

The goal ruined a superhuman effort by Argentine keeper Emiliano Mart\u00ednez, who made 11 saves while playing with a fractured right ring finger that will require surgery. That\u2019s two more saves than he had over the rest of the tournament.<\/p>\n

But the moment that may have sealed Argentina\u2019s fate came in the final minutes of second-half stoppage time when Enzo Fern\u00e1ndez clattered into Spanish center back Pau Cubars\u00ed at midfield, flipping him head over heels. Fern\u00e1ndez had been booked minutes earlier for dissent, and the second yellow card led to his expulsion, forcing Argentina to finish shorthanded.<\/p>\n

Spain wasted little time exploiting the advantage and appeared to have scored six minutes into extra time when Williams banged in the rebound of a Mart\u00ednez save, only to have Slovakian referee Slavko Vincic wave it off, ruling that Spain\u2019s Mikel Merino had fouled Argentine defender Nicol\u00e1s Otamendi in the buildup to the goal.<\/p>\n

\"Spain <\/p>\n

Spain star Lamine Yamal in congratulated by FIFA President Gianni Infantino, left, and receives his medal from President Trump following Spain\u2019s win over Argentina in the World Cup final Sunday.<\/p>\n

(Justin Setterfield \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

The capacity crowd of 80,663, matching the second-largest of the tournament\u2019s 104 games, booed Trump when he appeared on a videoboard during the national anthem and again when he walked onto the pitch for the postgame awards ceremony.<\/p>\n

During the victory ceremony after the final of last summer\u2019s Club World Cup, played at the same stadium, Trump remained on the podium to celebrate with Chelsea\u2019s players and was seen on TV pocketing one of the winners\u2019 medals<\/a>. On Sunday, after Trump joined FIFA President Gianni Infantino presenting the World Cup trophy to Rodri, the Spanish captain motioned to Trump to move to the left side of the stage. As Spain lifted the trophy, Infantino escorted the president off the podium and away from the celebration.<\/p>\n

When Argentina gave the trophy back to Spain, it likely marked a passing of the torch. Argentina has played in three of the last four World Cup finals, but the average age of its starting lineup Sunday was more than 30, making it the second-oldest to play in a final behind the 11 Brazil used to win in 1962. And it got a bit older when Otamendi, 38, came on for 28-year-old Lisandro Mart\u00ednez, who left with an apparent injury just before the end of the first half.<\/p>\n

\"Argentina <\/p>\n

Argentina star Lionel Messi reacts after losing to Spain in the World Cup final.<\/p>\n

(Pamela Smith \/ Associated Press)<\/p>\n

Spain, meanwhile, had the sixth-youngest roster of the 48 teams. Two of La Roja\u2019s starters \u2014 teenagers Cubars\u00ed and wunderkind Lamine Yamal \u2014 hadn\u2019t even been born when Messi made his World Cup debut in 2006.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe way this team has matured, it built every day,\u201d said Rodri, the third-oldest starter on the team despite being just 30. \u201cWe faced different opponents. Of course, lots of European opponents. But different moments and different types of games and we managed to play all of them.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe grew in this sense and this generation is making history for our country.\u201d<\/p>\n

A history that de la Fuente said is just beginning.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis team has a long way to go,\u201d he said. \u201cWe are already thinking to what is next, what is coming up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sports Editor Iliana Lim\u00f3n Romero and staff writers Jad El Reda and Eduard Cauich contributed to this report.<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

Spain players celebrate after defeating Argentina for the World Cup title on Sunday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J.\u00a0\u2014\u00a0This summer\u2019s World Cup was so good, nobody wanted it to end. So Spain and Argentina…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":404953,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[19294,162413,162414,47780,23338,423,2194,48,52,51,47,50,49,5463,162416,3020,162415,35345,3239,8934,5393],"class_list":["post-404952","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-los-angeles","tag-argentina","tag-epic-tournament","tag-ferran-torres","tag-final-minute","tag-first-team","tag-game","tag-goal","tag-la","tag-la-headlines","tag-la-news","tag-los-angeles","tag-los-angeles-headlines","tag-los-angeles-news","tag-minute","tag-nico-williams","tag-president-trump","tag-rodri","tag-spain","tag-stage","tag-victory","tag-world-cup"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/404952","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=404952"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/404952\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/404953"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=404952"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=404952"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=404952"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}