Spain Advances to World Cup Final, Defeats France 2:0

Refereeing Debate After the Match

The response from world football's governing body did not take long. Pierluigi Collina, Italy's FIFA head of refereeing and former elite referee, firmly rejected the criticism: "Unsere Schiedsrichter sind Weltklasse." And further: "Als Reaktion auf die Äußerungen von Didier Deschamps, der infrage gestellt hat, ob unser Schiedsrichter das Niveau hatte, das Halbfinale zu leiten, ist die Antwort der FIFA eindeutig: 'Ja, definitiv.'" Yellow cards were shown to Rabiot and Kylian Mbappé on the French side, and to Marc Cucurella on the Spanish side.

Despite the defeat, Deschamps acknowledged the opponent's performance: "Spanien hat gut verteidigt." At the same time, he pointed to his own technical errors and emphasized that he was "sehr stolz auf alles, was wir mit der Nationalmannschaft erreicht haben". This match was "nicht so ein Moment" for him – an allusion to the upcoming end of his tenure, which has lasted since 2012. The Frenchman is regarded as a world champion coach and won the title with the "Équipe Tricolore" in 2018 and reached the final in 2022. In the tournament, France had not conceded a goal until the semifinal and had scored 16 goals in the previous six World Cup matches.

Analysis: Why Spain Convinces as a Team

Marc Janko, football expert at ServusTV and former Austrian international with 70 caps, analyzed the match for the daily newspaper KURIER. He congratulated Spain, saying: "Deswegen herzlichen Glückwunsch zum Weltmeistertitel." Before the match he had tipped France because he had been "von der hohen Qualität ihrer Einzelspieler überzeugt". But by now he sees things differently: "Spanien ist das wohl beste Team der Welt – mit Betonung auf 'Team'." He continues to believe that France is "auf fast jeder Position besser besetzt", but as a team Spain cannot be beaten: "Denn wer soll diese Mannschaft schlagen?"

Janko went on to explain why the Spaniards are so convincing as a collective. Every Spanish player has "mit dem Ball am Fuß fast immer, aufgrund der perfekten Positionierung, zumindest zwei Anspielstationen". The team has played "schon längere Zeit so zusammen und hat definitiv Automatismen verinnerlicht". The mix of experienced players and young talents is also working: "Cubarsi mit seinen 19 Jahren spielt um nichts schlechter, es ist beeindruckend." Pep Guardiola, head coach of Manchester City, had, according to Janko, pointed out months ago that at this World Cup one would "wieder den wahren Rodri sehen wird" – an assessment that has been confirmed in the tournament.

Janko described Rodri as "Taktgeber, das Herz der Mannschaft" and called Dani Olmo the "hidden hero" of this tournament. Olmo is playing "eine extrem starke WM. Seine Ballannahmen, Mitnahmen, sein Passspiel, alles extrem elegant und effizient". He also praised Mikel Oyarzabal explicitly: "Mit Mikel Oyarzabal haben sie vorne einen drinnen, der sich wohl nie verdächtig machen wird, bei den ganz großen Klubs dieser Welt aufzuschlagen – und dennoch liefert er weltmeisterlich." In defense, Aymeric Laporte convinces, "der vorzeigt, dass man auch Körperlichkeit mitbringen" can. The "Wir-Gefühl" of the team is primarily attributable to the coach: "Spanien hat Superstars, eine Geschlossenheit und ein Wir-Gefühl, das mit Trainer Luis De la Fuente wieder Einzug gefunden hat."

Outlook: Final and Third-Place Match

France's players openly acknowledged the opponent's strength. Maxence Lacroix, who had been substituted in the 30th minute for the injured William Saliba, said: "Wir waren heute nicht auf unserem höchsten Level." Kylian Mbappé, who has already scored eight goals at the World Cup in North America, stated: "Es ist ein Team, das es liebt, den Ball und das Spiel zu kontrollieren, und das haben wir ihnen erlaubt." Mbappé also announced that in the third-place match on Saturday at 11:00 PM (live on ServusTV) in Miami he wanted to deliver a fitting farewell for Deschamps and the fans: "Weil er das verdient."

The final takes place on Sunday at 9:00 PM in East Rutherford near New York and will be broadcast in Germany by ZDF and MagentaTV, and live in Austria on ORF1. The Spanish team, which came into the tournament as reigning European champion, goes into the final as favorite after this semifinal – and could win the World Cup title again after 2010. According to reports, Zinedine Zidane will succeed Deschamps after his departure as France's national team coach.

France's national team must settle for the third-place match after being eliminated in the semifinal. During his tenure, Deschamps had won the 2018 World Cup in Russia and reached the 2022 final in Qatar. The tournament in North America thus ends for the "Équipe Tricolore" without another final appearance, but with the chance to conclude the tournament with a third-place finish and a conciliatory farewell for the long-time successful coach.