Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: France take on Spain in the first semifinal of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Texas on Tuesday night.
The fixture pits one of the tournament’s most potent attacks against its most resolute defence. France have scored a tournament-high 16 goals and lead all teams with an expected goals (xG) tally of 14.3, while Spain have conceded just one goal in six matches.
Kylian Mbappe and Ousmane Dembele will spearhead France’s attack. The two have scored 16 of France’s 16 goals in the tournament. Mbappe is tied with Argentina captain Lionel Messi in the race for the Golden Boot, while Dembele has scored five goals.
France have also been solid defensively, conceding just two goals in six matches. Their only goals against came against Senegal and Norway.
Spain, however, boast an even better defensive record. Their lone goal conceded came against Belgium in the quarterfinal. They have scored nine goals in six matches played in the World Cup so far.
Goalkeeper Unai Simón has set an all-time World Cup record by going 650 consecutive minutes without conceding a goal across the 2022 and 2026 tournaments. Spain have also restricted opponents to just 1.17 shots on target per game, making Tuesday’s contest a battle between France’s attacking firepower and Spain’s defensive resilience.
The semifinal also carries historical significance. It is the first time since the FIFA World Ranking was introduced in 1992 that the world’s top four-ranked teams have reached the World Cup semifinals. France are currently ranked first, Argentina second, Spain third and England fourth.
It also marks only the third time in World Cup history that all four semifinalists are former champions.
France have won the World Cup twice, in 1998 and 2018, while Spain lifted the trophy in 2010. Argentina are three-time champions, having been crowned champions in 1978, 1986 and 2022, while England’s only World Cup title came in 1966.
The previous occasions on which all four semifinalists were former champions were in 1970 (Brazil, West Germany, Uruguay and Italy) and 1990 (West Germany, Argentina, England and Italy).
