By 
Spain’s second World Cup triumph was about more than lifting the trophy. It was a tournament they dominated from start to finish, sealing the title with a dramatic victory over Argentina before sweeping three of the competition’s biggest individual awards.
La Roja beat Argentina 1-0 after extra time in Sunday’s final at the packed New York New Jersey Stadium to win their second FIFA World Cup, adding to the title they claimed in South Africa in 2010.
The final remained deadlocked after 90 tense minutes before Argentina’s task became harder when Enzo Fernandez was sent off two minutes into extra time by Slovenian referee Slavko Vincic.
Spain eventually found the breakthrough in the 106th minute. Substitute Ferran Torres was in the right place to finish past Emiliano Martinez and send the Spanish bench into celebration.
Their victory crowned an outstanding tournament that also earned Spain three major individual honours.
Captain Rodrigo Hernández Cascante commonly known as ‘Rodri’ was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player after leading Spain’s midfield with authority throughout the campaign.
Teenage defender Pau Cubarsi won the Young Player of the Tournament award, while goalkeeper Unai Simon claimed the Golden Glove after conceding just once in the entire competition.
The only individual prize to escape Spain went to France captain Kylian Mbappe, who finished as the tournament’s top scorer with 10 goals.
Mbappe also became the World Cup’s all-time leading scorer, taking his tally to 22 goals across three tournaments to surpass Miroslav Klose’s previous record of 16.
The tournament produced several other milestones. Lionel Messi became the first player to make 34 World Cup appearances across six editions, while Cristiano Ronaldo became the first footballer to score in six different World Cups.
France midfielder Michael Olise set a new tournament record with seven assists, breaking Pele’s long-standing mark of six set in 1970.
Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha became the oldest goalkeeper to keep a clean sheet on his World Cup debut at 40, while Curacao coach Dick Advocaat became the oldest manager to oversee a World Cup match at 78.
Earlier, England claimed third place after defeating France 6-4 in an entertaining bronze medal match.
Spain earned $42 million for winning the title, with Argentina receiving $30 million. England took home $27 million, while fourth-placed France collected $25 million.
The 2026 tournament, co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, was the first to feature 48 teams. The next World Cup will be held in 2030 and jointly hosted by Morocco, Spain and Portugal.
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