Preview: Spain and Argentina collide in seismic World Cup final in USA

Who: Spain vs Argentina
What: FIFA World Cup ۲۰۲۶ final
Where: New York-New Jersey Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey, United States
When: Sunday at ۳pm (۱۹:۰۰ GMT)
How to follow: We will have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from ۱۵:۰۰ GMT before our live text commentary stream.

Chaos vs calm. Godfather vs heir. World number one vs world number two.

The storylines could not be any better.

As the sun shines on the New York skyline, football’s biggest stage gets ready for its perfect closing act: the FIFA World Cup final between Argentina and Spain.

It is a gift for the football purists, a clash of philosophies, if you will – Argentina, the reigning champions who have made a habit of embracing the suffering, and Spain, the European winners who have taught the world a masterclass in control.

On one hand is the unstoppable, almost unnatural force of Lionel Messi – whose movements on the field are no less than spells from a magic wand – and on the other is Lamine Yamal, the teen prodigy whose flair on the field and flamboyant personality off it show signs of a superstar in the making.

So when the confetti falls and the fireworks erupt, will it be Argentina lifting a historic second straight world title, or will the golden generation of Spain bring back joy after ۱۶ years of waiting?

Here’s all to know about the seismic showdown:

How did Spain and Argentina reach the World Cup final?

Spain topped Group H with seven points, beating Saudi Arabia and Uruguay and drawing with Cape Verde. They began their knockout campaign with a ۳-۰ thrashing of Austria in the round of ۳۲ before beating Portugal ۱-۰ with a late goal in an Iberian football derby in the round of ۱۶.

Their route to the semifinals was confirmed with a late ۲-۱ win over Belgium, and then they stunned favourites France, taming their attack to win the semifinal ۲-۰.

Argentina had a strong showing in the first round, topping Group J by beating Algeria, Austria and Jordan. In the round of ۳۲, they were pushed to their limits before squeezing past Cape Verde ۳-۲ in extra time, and came from two goals down to beat Egypt ۳-۲ in a controversial last-۱۶ contest which drew allegations of officiating bias.

Against Switzerland in the quarterfinals, they again played a full ۱۲۰ minutes before securing a ۳-۱ win and broke English hearts with a late ۲-۱ comeback win in a highly charged semifinal encounter.

Marvellous Messi’s Last Dance?

If there were not already enough new records Messi has made in the past month, the ۳۹-year-old diminutive forward is set to add another to his tally – the oldest outfield player to feature in a World Cup final.

It could also be his last.

Leo – as Argentinians commonly call him – has not spoken about his future, but with an illustrious career, headlined by his ۲۰۲۲ World Cup triumph, this year’s tournament seems to be his last, especially if he fulfils a rare back-to-back World Cup title dream.

“He has made history. He is a legend,” Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni said of Messi, one of the greatest players to have graced the football field.

A decade ago, frustrated after a Copa America final loss to Chile, his fourth defeat in a final for Argentina, Messi hung up his boots. The narrative then centred around the fact that despite all his success at the club level, international glory had eluded Messi.

But fast forward to ۲۰۲۶, the Argentina captain has led his team to successive World Cup finals and is bidding for his first Golden Boot – a twist of fate even Messi would not have imagined.

“To have been able to get to a final in the way that he has in this moment, at the age of ۳۹, I think it is incredible,” Scaloni added. “That is why I said we should enjoy having him, because look at what happened with Diego [Maradona] and how we ended up missing him.

“We still have Leo, and we should appreciate that. He is the historic figure and the legend, as are all these players who have given us these marvellous years.”

The little magician from Rosario will lead Argentina’s charge on Sunday, as La Albiceleste aim to become just the third team in the tournament’s history to retain the World Cup after Italy (۱۹۳۴ and ۱۹۳۸) and Brazil (۱۹۵۸ and ۱۹۶۲).

Slick Spain out to silence Argentina

Unlike Argentina, whose game largely depends on the individual brilliance of Messi, Spain are a team built solidly on the collective.

La Roja love to keep the ball and suppress the attacking potential of any opponent.

Their organised, sturdy defence has kept six clean sheets, already the most by any side at a single World Cup tournament, and leaked just one goal en route to the final.

On Sunday, Spain will carry more hunger than fear against Argentina, “the team to beat”, as described by captain Rodri.

“We’ve been through a gradual process of growth, where we’ve seen a team mature over the last few years,” Rodri said. “This team and this ⁠generation were going to make a name for themselves … and now reaching the final of a World Cup.

“So we’re pleased with the journey the team has taken, but we’re not stopping there; our ambition goes much further.”

The bookmakers’ favourite from the beginning, Spain have played like a side that knows best how to deal with pressure. They produced the performance of the tournament in their stunning semifinal defeat of France, silencing Les Blues’ valiant attack.

Rodri said while that display was “one of the best” the current Spanish side had ever produced, they would need to scale new heights to defeat Argentina and clinch their first world title since ۲۰۱۰.

“I think we have to raise the level because they are the champions. And I’m really confident that we can do [it],” he added.

Spain vs Argentina predictions

The Opta supercomputer views Spain as the favourites in the final, with a ۴۵ percent probability of winning in ۹۰ minutes. It predicts a ۲۶ percent probability of Argentina winning in regulation time, while there is a ۲۹ percent probability of the match going to extra time or penalties.

Overall, Spain have a ۵۹.۵۶ percent chance of winning the ۲۰۲۶ World Cup, while Argentina have a ۴۰.۴۴ percent probability of retaining the title they won in Qatar four years ago.

Who are the referees for Spain vs Argentina?

• Referee: Slavko Vincic (Slovenia)
• Assistant referee ۱: Tomasz Klancnik (Slovenia)
• Assistant referee ۲: Andraz Kovacic (Slovenia)
• Fourth official: Adham Makhadmeh (Jordan)
• Reserve assistant referee: Mohammad Alkalaf (Jordan)

Spain vs Argentina: Kickoff time, where to watch

• Spain: DAZN Mundial (۹pm, Central European Summer Time)
• Argentina: TyC Sports, TyC Play (۴pm, Argentina Standard Time)
• United Kingdom: BBC One, BBC iPlayer, STV, STV Player, ITV۱, ITVX, Red Button ۱ (۸pm, British Summer Time)
• US: Fox, Fox One, Peacock, Telemundo App and Network, Universo, Telexitos (۳pm, Eastern Daylight Time)

To check the TV listings for your country, head to FIFA’s TV listing schedule here.

Where is Spain vs Argentina being played?

The World Cup final will be played at MetLife Stadium, home to two National Football League (NFL) teams: the New York Giants and the New York Jets. For the FIFA World Cup, the venue has temporarily been rebadged as New York-New Jersey Stadium.

Built in ۲۰۱۰, this huge multipurpose stadium holds up to ۸۲,۵۰۰ spectators for football matches. The venue also hosted the ۲۰۲۵ FIFA Club World Cup final and both semifinals.

What is the weather forecast and air quality for New Jersey?

AccuWeather predicts mostly sunny and less humid weather for Sunday in New Jersey.

Smoke from Canadian wildfires has blanketed much of the northeastern US, triggering ⁠health alerts. On Thursday, the air quality in New Jersey was rated “unhealthy for sensitive groups” by several air quality measurement platforms.

But for Sunday, the US government’s official air quality monitoring site, airnow.gov, expects the air quality index (AQI) to be “moderate”.

Spain vs Argentina: Head-to-head

This will be only the second World Cup meeting between Spain and Argentina, with Argentina winning ۲-۱ in the group stages in ۱۹۶۶.

• Matches: ۱۶
• Spain wins: ۶
• Argentina wins: ۶
• Draws: ۲

Spain vs Argentina: Past results (All friendlies)

• Spain ۶-۱ Argentina (March ۲۰۱۸)
• Spain ۱-۴ Argentina (September ۲۰۱۰)
• Spain ۲-۱ Argentina (November ۲۰۰۹)
• Spain ۲-۱ Argentina (۱۱ October ۲۰۰۶)
• Spain ۰-۲ Argentina (November ۱۹۹۹)

Spain vs Argentina: Team news

No injuries reported in either camp.

Spain’s predicted lineup

(۴-۲-۳-۱): Simon (goalkeeper); Porro, Cubarsi, Laporte, Cucurella; Rodri, Ruiz; Yamal, Olmo, Baena; Oyarzabal

Argentina’s predicted lineup

(۴-۱-۳-۲): Martinez (goalkeeper); Molina, Romero, Lisandro, Tagliafico; Paredes; De Paul, Fernandez, Mac Allister; Messi, Alvarez