Spain are world champions again. Ferran Torres' 106th-minute strike settled a tense, error-strewn World Cup final at MetLife Stadium, ending Argentina
Spain are world champions again. Ferran Torres’ 106th-minute strike settled a tense, error-strewn World Cup final at MetLife Stadium, ending Argentina’s bid for back-to-back titles and closing out La Roja’s tournament in style.
For long stretches, this final threatened to become one-way traffic that simply refused to produce a goal.
Spain dominated possession and territory from the first whistle, but Emiliano Martínez stood tall between the posts, repelling everything sent his way through 90 gripping minutes and pushing the contest into extra time.
The breakthrough, when it arrived, came fast. Barely more than half a minute into the second period of extra time, Nico Williams drove at the Argentina defence and squared for Torres, who made no mistake, thumping the ball into the roof of the net to send the Spanish bench into delirium.
The numbers told their own story of Spanish control: Spain racked up an expected-goals tally close to 2 from 20 attempts, while Argentina could barely muster a shot on target across the full 120 minutes.
Lionel Messi, playing what may prove his last World Cup match, had just a single effort all game — a tame strike that cannoned off Mikel Merino.
Argentina’s night was compounded by a red card for Enzo Fernández in second-half stoppage time, reducing them to ten men and forcing an already stretched side to defend for their lives through extra time.
Spain also had what looked like a legitimate goal chalked off earlier, with Williams’ finish ruled out for a foul in the build-up.
It capped a remarkable run for Luis de la Fuente’s side, who began their campaign with a shock draw against debutants Cape Verde before growing into the tournament and finishing unbeaten.
Teenager Lamine Yamal continued to torment defences throughout, while Kylian Mbappé’s tournament form earned him the Golden Boot and Rodri the Golden Ball.
For Argentina, this was a cruel way to bow out. Two-time defending champions denied the chance to make history, undone not by a moment of individual brilliance but by patience, control, and a Spanish side that simply would not relent.
Ugly scenes followed the final whistle as tempers flared between the two camps — a fittingly tense end to a final that had promised fireworks and instead delivered a masterclass in defensive resistance, broken only in its dying embers.
Spain’s second World Cup title arrives sixteen years after their first, in 2010.
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