Champions already? Spain defend ABSURD World Cup record, explained

Just one goal conceded after six matches played.

That is Spain at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. 

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Luis de la Fuente’s side will face France this Tuesday (14), relying on a defensive system that was breached only in the quarter-finals.

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La Roja are only the THIRD national team to reach a World Cup semi-final having conceded just one goal. 

The others? France in 1998, with Barthez, Thuram and Desailly, and Italy in 2006, with Buffon, Cannavaro and Gattuso. 

Teams that... went on to become world champions.

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And Spain’s mark is even better, since they have played one extra match thanks to the Round of 32, introduced in this edition of the World Cup. 

Looking back

France in 1998 conceded that goal in a 2-1 win over Denmark in the group stage. Before that, they had beaten South Africa 3-0 and Saudi Arabia 4-0.

They reached the semi-finals after beating Paraguay 1-0 thanks to a "golden goal" and then defeating Italy on penalties after a goalless draw.

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They faced Croatia in the semi-final, conceded their second goal of the World Cup, but made it to the final after Thuram starred. They would go on to beat Brazil 3-0 in the final. 

Italy also conceded their goal in the group stage, in a 1-1 draw with the United States. They beat Ghana and the Czech Republic by the same scoreline (2-0) to qualify.

That run then featured wins over Australia (1-0) and Ukraine (3-0) before they beat Germany 2-0 in extra time to reach the final.

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📸 Andreas Rentz - 2006 Getty Images

The second goal they conceded in that World Cup did not stop them from beating France on penalties after a 1-1 draw. 

🇪🇸 will face... a DEADLY attack

France had the most prolific attack in the World Cup up to the quarter-finals - when Argentina overtook them in that statistic.

They have scored 16 goals in six matches.

Mbappé has eight, sharing the tournament scoring lead with Messi.

Dembélé has five. Barcola has two and Doué has found the net once.

One of the biggest sensations of the European season with Bayern, Olise is still yet to score.

But he leads the way in assists. He has five so far.

Mbappé (three), Dembélé (two), and Doué, Barcola, Tchouameni and Rabiot (one each) complete the list. 

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.

📸 ROBERTO SCHMIDT - AFP or licensors

  • Real Madrid
  • Spain
  • France
  • World Cup
  • Kylian Mbappé

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Source: Onefootball.com