We are down to 4 teams in the 2026 FIFA World Cup. What started with 48 teams from all the continents is now down to 4 teams from 2 continents – Europe & America.

Tonight, we have the battle of the Europeans in Dallas: France vs Spain. It is first vs third by official ranking. It is the 2018 World Champions vs the 2010 World Champions.

France will be looking to be the 3rd team to reach 3 consecutive World Cup finals, after Germany (1982, 1984, 1990) and Brazil (1994, 1998, 2002). Spain are featuring in the semis for the first time since their 2010 success in South Africa.

Yesterday, we looked at the 2026 World Cup stats and you could see that the two sides are adequately represented on the important statistics except for the goal scorers. Kylian Mbappe lead the race for France and the World Cup with 8 goals, twice the number of goals scored by Mikel Oyarzabal – Spain’s top scorer.

Spain have relied on late winners from Arsenal’s Mikel Merino but will William Saliba lose focus towards the end of the game? Can Spain fend off the attacking quartet of Mbappe, Dembele, Doue/Bracola and Olise?

Will Lamine Yamal rise to the occasion. Spain have been the best passers in the competition . They are the only team with 1000+ passes in the final third so far.

Spain won each of their last 2 meetings against France with both meetings in the semi-finals. A 5-4 win in the Nations League semi and a 2-1 win in the Euro 2024 semi would be fresh in the memories of the players.

I am pipping this game to tilt towards penalties after a 2-2 draw.