Spain are champions of the world. A Lamine Yamal brace at MetLife Stadium settled the 2026 World Cup Final in Spain's favour on Sunday evening, a 2-1 win over an England side that gave everything it had and still walked off second best. Sixteen years after Iniesta's goal in Johannesburg, La Roja have the trophy back, and the youngest man on their pitch is the reason.
How the match unfolded
England set up in a 4-2-3-1 that would have been familiar to anyone who has watched Thomas Tuchel's tournament, Rice and Bellingham anchoring the double pivot, Foden and Saka wide of Kane. Spain went with the shape that got them here: 4-3-3, Rodri as the single pivot, Pedri and Zubimendi ahead, Nico Williams and Yamal as the wide forwards with รlvaro Morata leading the line. The opening twenty minutes belonged to Spain โ 68 per cent possession, three shots on Pickford, a corner routine that nearly produced the opener at the near post โ and by the half-hour mark it was starting to feel like an inevitability.
It came in the 34th. Pedri played a disguised inside pass to Yamal on the right, the 19-year-old shifted onto his left off the outside of Luke Shaw, and curled the finish across Pickford into the far corner. Standard Yamal. The Spanish fans behind the goal were in view of the ball's whole trajectory and reacted a beat before it went in. Half-time: Spain 1-0 England, and the Golden Boot race was suddenly a one-man contest.
England's response and Kane's penalty
Tuchel changed the shape at the break. Off came Trent Alexander-Arnold, on came Cole Palmer, and England's structure in possession looked entirely different โ Bellingham operating higher, Palmer floating between the lines, the back four sitting narrower to squeeze Spain's central passing angles. It worked. Inside ten minutes England had won three set pieces they hadn't looked like winning in the first half, and in the 60th minute Marc Cucurella lost his footing tracking a Bukayo Saka cutback and clipped the winger with a trailing arm inside the box.
Kane took his time. He always does. A three-step run, the goalkeeper committed early, and the ball went the other way. 1-1 in the 61st minute at MetLife and the tournament had turned upside down. England's bench was up on its feet. The Golden Boot race was, briefly, all-square again.
Yamal's second and the moment Spain took it back
The tournament's defining minute came in the 78th. Rodri intercepted a Bellingham pass around the halfway line, a two-touch reset by Zubimendi found Pedri on the half-turn, and Pedri slid the ball into the channel for Yamal to run onto behind Kyle Walker. Yamal took one touch to set, one to finish โ this time low and hard through Pickford's near side. 2-1. He wheeled away toward the corner where his family was sitting, arms out, and the stadium spent thirty seconds unable to decide whether it was cheering or gasping.
England pushed for the equaliser and came close twice โ a Saka header that Unai Simรณn palmed onto the crossbar, a Foden shot in the 89th minute that Aymeric Laporte blocked at the sacrifice of a boot studs to the shin. Six minutes of added time were played. None of them produced the goal. Full time, MetLife: Spain 2, England 1.
Individual awards and records
- Golden Boot: Lamine Yamal, 8 goals. Two in the final took him past the Kane tiebreaker for good.
- Golden Ball: Yamal, unopposed after his final performance. The youngest Golden Ball winner in World Cup history.
- Golden Glove: Unai Simรณn. Four clean sheets across the knockouts and the crossbar-clanging save on Saka.
- Young Player of the Tournament: Also Yamal. He becomes the first player to sweep the Golden Boot, Golden Ball and Young Player at a single World Cup.
What it means for Spain
Two World Cups now, sixteen years apart. Spain also hold the current European Championship, the Nations League, and the Olympic gold medal from Paris 2024, which makes them the first men's national team to hold all four major trophies simultaneously. It is a generational team built around a 19-year-old wide forward, a 22-year-old midfielder, and the last of the tiki-taka-era holdouts still turning out at the base of midfield. It is not over. Yamal turns 21 in July 2028. The Euros in the UK are two years away.
What it means for England
A first World Cup final since 1966 and no trophy to show for it. Tuchel's team was better than the sum of its parts for six weeks, and the England pass rate in Spain's half was actually higher than Spain's own from the 60th minute onward โ the numbers said this was closer than the scoreline. But Spain had a Yamal and England did not, and finals reward the team with the individual who can decide it. Kane finishes the tournament with 7 goals, second in the Boot race, and no medal.
FAQ
Who scored for Spain? Lamine Yamal, in the 34th and 78th minutes. Harry Kane converted a 61st-minute penalty for England.
Where is the next World Cup? The 2030 edition will be co-hosted by Morocco, Portugal and Spain, with three opening matches played in South America to mark the centenary of the 1930 tournament.
Where can I find more coverage? Follow soccer live scores on Scorelisto for the post-tournament friendlies calendar, or head to the Scorelisto blog for our full tournament awards breakdown.