Two decades of football history meet their possible successor on July 19. Spain and Argentina will contest the 2026 World Cup final and with them, Lionel Messi and Lamine Yamal, the player who defined an era and the teenager being asked to start the next one.
Spain booked their spot with a controlled 2-0 win over France. Argentina took the harder road, falling behind against England before turning the game around to win 2-1 and reach a second straight final. Messi, who lifted the trophy in Qatar four years ago, gets another shot at it.
Yamal had said publicly he wanted to face Messi on the World Cup stage. The bracket obliged. The Spanish teenager, who grew up idolising the Argentine captain, now lines up opposite him in the biggest match in the sport.
It’s a collision the tournament rarely delivers on cue and it comes with a trophy attached rather than in a friendly or a club fixture.
Third-place playoff
France and England will contest the consolation match on Saturday, July 18, a day before the final. Both arrive having come up just short of a title shot, and both will want to leave with something.
The supercomputer got it wrong
Worth noting for anyone who trusts the models: Opta’s supercomputer had backed England to knock Argentina out, and rated Spain the outright favourite. Argentina’s comeback settled the first half of that prediction. Whether Spain vindicates the second half gets answered on Sunday.
