Ferran Torres is celebrating the goal heard ‘round the world, leads Spain to FIFA World Cup championship after hard-fought battle against Argentina.
The 26-year-old Spanish professional footballer’s first goal of this year’s World Cup, unquestionably the goal of his life, gave his country a 1-0 win over now-dethroned champion Argentina in the final on Sunday.
“It was a goal scored by 47 million people,” Torres said, referring to Spain’s population.
The goal came with Argentina down to 10 men after Enzo Fernandez was sent off late in regulation following a reckless tackle.
Tempers flared then, and flared again after the final whistle with Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni and players from both sides engaging in what appeared to be some pushing and shoving.
In the end, Spain denied Lionel Messi a second straight title in what he has indicated was his final World Cup match.
Torres, a second-half substitute, pounced on a bouncing ball in the box and used his left foot to bury a shot just under the crossbar in the 106th minute.
From there, the airtight defense that dominated opponents throughout the tournament came through one final time.
Spain, which also won the title in 2010, allowed only one goal in eight matches in this World Cup run, setting a record for fewest goals allowed by a champion.
“I feel pride, to be honest,” said Spain coach Luis de la Fuente, who at 65 is now the oldest man to lead a team to a World Cup title. “Accompanying them on this journey is an honor.”
This title, combined with the Women’s World Cup won by Spain in 2023, makes the European nation the first to hold both the men’s and women’s titles simultaneously.
While the score indicates the match was close, only one team was in command.
Spain took the game’s first 20 shots on goal before Argentina, desperate for an equalizer, got its first attempt off in the second half of extra time. Spain took nine of the game’s first 10 corner kicks, and only a World Cup final-record 12 saves by Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez gave the 2022 champions a shot at going back-to-back.
“Dibu was nothing short of exceptional,” de la Fuente said, referring to Argentina’s keeper by his nickname.
Spain is now unbeaten in its last 38 matches, 29 wins, nine draws, and is the outright holder of the longest such streak by any European men’s team ever. Italy went 37 matches (28 wins, nine draws) from October 2018 through September 2021, before Spain ended that streak.
And for the last two-plus years, nobody has beaten Spain. Not even Messi. An Argentina team that was the kings of the late-game rally in this tournament had no answer this time.
“We lost the game, and we accept that,” Scaloni said. “That doesn’t mean that we will forget everything we’ve done so far, so I’d like to thank my people, my players and the country. I can tell them that we played our hearts out.”
Messi took a corner kick with about four minutes left before the final whistle and the ball took a fortunate skip toward substitute Giuliano Simeone, who sent it high and over the crossbar, holding his head in disbelief afterward.
“When you have Messi on the other side, well, you are nervous,” Torres said. “At the end of the day, we always depended on us. We always come up with our football, and we showed it again.”
After the post-match scuffles, they also paid tribute to the former champions. Spain’s players lined up to form an honor guard of sorts for Argentina’s squad to walk through on its way to the stage for the runner-up medals from U.S. President Donald Trump and FIFA President Gianni Infantino.
It was the 104th and last match of the biggest World Cup ever, a 48-team event that played out over the U.S., Canada and Mexico. Because there were more matches than any previous World Cup, it was no surprise that there were more goals than all other editions — more than 300, nearly three per match.
Except, of course, when Spain was involved. Spain’s plan was simple and flawless: Hold the ball as much as possible, denying opponents any hint of chances.
It worked, all the way to the end.
Rodri earned the award for captaining Spain’s run to their second World Cup title. Lionel Messi had to settle for the Silver Ball, with France’s Kylian Mbappé taking the Bronze Ball.
