FIFA WC 2026: 38 and counting: Spain are the World Champions and the greatest unbeaten team in the history of football | Football News
They came to New Jersey as history makers. They left as world champions.Spain beat Argentina 1-0 in a tense, dramatic World Cup final at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford on Sunday night, with Ferran Torres’ second strike separating the two sides and giving Spain their second World Cup title, 16 years after their first in South Africa in 2010.But the trophy wasn’t the only piece of history made on Sunday night. By winning the final, Spain extended their unbeaten run to 38 consecutive matches in all competitions, surpassing Italy’s 37-match record and becoming the team with the longest unbeaten run in the history of European and South American international football. No team from either continent has gone undefeated.Torres, who had endured a tough tournament by his own high standards before this final, scored the most important goal of his career. Picking up a perfectly weighted pass from Pedri on the edge of Argentina’s penalty area in the 67th minute, the Manchester City forward took a touch to control and drilled an accurate low effort past Emiliano Martínez and into the bottom corner. MetLife Stadium, full of red and yellow, erupted.Pushed by Argentina. Lionel Messi, playing the last game of his international career, repeatedly drove forward, created moments and demanded the ball as he always does. But Spain’s defense, six clean sheets in six previous matches, the best defensive record in World Cup history is not about to be broken on the biggest night of all. Unai Simón made two crucial saves in the last ten minutes to preserve the clean sheet and send the trophy to Spain.For Messi, it was a painful end to a career of extraordinary beauty. He finished the 2026 World Cup with eight goals and four assists, one of the most individual tournament statistics in World Cup history. But Argentina’s second consecutive title was unlikely.For Spain, undefeated in 38 games, European champions in 2024 and now world champions in 2026, the record books belong entirely.The Italian record stood for five years. Spain broke it on the biggest stage of all with a World Cup trophy in their hands.
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