In Tuesday's game in Arlington, Texas, where two of football's biggest heavyweights were in attendance, Spain did an impressive job, overwhelming France with a 2-0 victory to advance to Sunday's quarterfinals. World Cup final at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
This is the second time Spain is playing in the World Cup finals. Spain won the tournament in 2010.
The Spaniards will face the winner of the second semi-final between defending champions Argentina and England, which takes place on Wednesday.
Spain's first goal came in the 22nd minute when Mikel Oyarzabal scored a penalty after Spain's Lamine Yamal was fouled with a header.
France defender Lucas Digne was trying to collect the ball after a misjudged jump when Yamal, just after his 19th birthday, ran from behind to challenge in the penalty area. Yamal was kicked when Digne tried to clear the ball.
Oyarzabal's fifth goal in this year's World Cup marked the first time any of these teams trailed in seven games in the tournament. It was his 30th goal in 60 games for Spain.
After his 19th birthday, Yamal was denied a goal by a near-offside call that came shortly after Spain defender Pedro Porro had fed Dani Olmo in the 58th minute to put Spain 2-0 up. But it was Yamal's brilliant display against the veteran defender that put Spain ahead.
“We gave everything to go to the finals,” said Porro. “We knew we were a very difficult team, we did things very well. This is our team, it's not about me.”
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After defeating Belgium in the quarterfinals last Friday, Yamal said he believes France should fear Spain. Those words certainly came true.
The loss means France have failed in their bid to reach a third consecutive final, after winning in 2018 and losing on penalties to Argentina four years ago. They will instead play the third-place game in Miami Gardens, Florida, on Saturday, the day before the semifinals at MetLife Stadium across the river from New York City.
The win at soccer's biggest stage marked the third consecutive summer Spain had defeated France in the tournament's semi-finals. Yamal scored in a 2-1 win in the semi-finals of the 2024 European Championship just days before his 17th birthday, while La Roja won 5-4 in the Nations League last year.
France had conceded just two goals in their first six games in the tournament. Spain's goalkeeper, Unai Simón, has six shutouts and has allowed just one goal in seven games so far.
Kylian Mbappé was in the starting line-up for France after the striker came off in the 77th minute of the team's quarter-final win over Morocco. Mbappé scored his eighth goal against Morocco and moved into the semi-finals even with Argentina star Lionel Messi in the race for the Golden Boot. Messi, 39, has a record 21 World Cup goals, one more than 27-year-old Mbappé.
Spain's run at this year's World Cup extended its regular season unbeaten run to 37 games (28 wins and nine draws) from March 2024. That broke the country's previous record of 35 in a row from 2007-09.
The defeat broke France's record-equaling run of six consecutive World Cup victories, which was also achieved at the 2018 and 2022 tournaments.
