Spain are world champions again. Ferran Torres, on as a second-half substitute, scored the only goal of the 2026 World Cup final in the 106th minute of extra time to give Luis de la Fuente's side a 1-0 victory over Argentina at MetLife Stadium. It was the moment that decided everything: a tournament of attrition, a final of suffocation, resolved by a single strike after 90 minutes could not separate them.
The match itself was an exercise in control rather than spectacle. Spain dominated possession with the authority of a side that had seldom looked troubled across the tournament, finishing with 65 per cent of the ball and 852 passes to Argentina's 463. They had 20 shots to Argentina's two. Emiliano Martínez, magnificent and unbeatable for long stretches, kept the scoreline level through 90 minutes almost single-handedly, making 11 saves. At the other end, Unai Simón was never truly tested, Argentina managing no shots on target across the entire 120 minutes.
Rodri, back in the engine room, was the quiet architect of Spain's control. He moved the ball simply, screened intelligently, and gave Lionel Scaloni's defensive lines no room to breathe. Without his authority in midfield, Spain's shape would have looked considerably less assured. When he departed just before the hour mark of extra time, it was with the knowledge that his work had already been done.
Lamine Yamal, 18 years old in a World Cup final, carried Spain's energy throughout. He lasted the full 120 minutes, an extraordinary physical effort, and though he could not find the breakthrough himself, he was the player Argentina feared most whenever Spain moved forward quickly. The disruption he caused gave Spain width and variety that the back four spent the entire match chasing.
Argentina's discipline cracked before the goal did. Enzo Fernández collected two yellow cards and was dismissed at the end of normal time, and Leandro Paredes was also sent off during the match. The cumulative effect of five yellow cards and two red cards told its own story: Scaloni's side were stretched, fraying, and competing with their bodies as much as their football. That they held on until the 106th minute owed everything to Martínez between the posts.
Nico Williams, who had come on at half-time, supplied the assist in extra time. The timing of his introduction proved decisive, his pace and directness continuing to stretch Argentina as legs grew heavy. Torres, who had been on the pitch since the 62nd minute of normal time, applied the finish and settled the contest.
Messi played all 120 minutes. He pressed, he drifted, he searched for pockets, and for long periods he was the best-positioned player on the pitch with the least service. Argentina's attacking statistics, two total shots, explained the problem more plainly than anything else. This was not a game Spain allowed Argentina to play. It was a game Spain organised specifically to ensure Argentina could not.
Four years ago in Qatar, Argentina defeated France in one of the most extraordinary finals in the competition's history. On a humid New Jersey evening, there was no such chaos, no such comeback. Spain were methodical, relentless, and, when the moment finally came, clinical enough to take it.
A second consecutive World Cup triumph for Spain. Three in total. That is not coincidence; it is construction.