France and Spain, arch-rival powerhouses, meet in the first semifinal of the 2026 World Cup at the AT&T Stadium in Dallas. It is more than just a football match: it is a contest of revenge, revival and tactical masterminds. On one side is the sharpest attack of the tournament, honed by Didier Deschamps; on the other, the youthful, attacking Spanish side of Luis de la Fuente.
Both teams reached the semifinals somewhat dramatically. France were a little out of rhythm early in their group opener against Senegal, but after the break Deschamps’ tactical changes brought them back, and a brace from superstar Kylian Mbappe and a superb chip from young winger Bradley Barcola sealed a 3-1 win. Since then the French have been irresistible, scoring 16 goals in six matches, beating Morocco 2-0 in the quarterfinal and keeping clean sheets in four of five matches. Spain entered as strong contenders for the cup, but disappointed fans with a goalless draw against debutants Cape Verde in the group stage; they then turned things around by conceding the fewest goals, keeping clean sheets up to the quarterfinal. Against Belgium in the last eight, Spain went ahead through Fabian Ruiz in the 30th minute, Belgium’s Charles De Ketelaere equalised in the 41st, and substitute Mikel Merino struck in the 88th minute to win it 2-1 and reach the semifinals.
The contest is one of contrasting tactics. Deschamps has brought Michael Olise into a central role while keeping his defensive structure intact, and prefers to use the pace of Olise, winger Ousmane Dembele and Barcola on the counterattack in his 4-2-3-1. There is concern in the French camp over defensive pillar Manu Kone and his card situation, though the possible return of Aurelien Tchouameni is a boost. Spain, meanwhile, have moved away from slow passing football to a faster game under De la Fuente, with central-midfield responsibility on Rodri and Pedri.
The clash is also a duel of two stars. Kylian Mbappe, Real Madrid’s captain and the driving force of France’s attack, tops the scoring chart with eight goals at this World Cup, and Spain’s coach has assigned right-back Pedro and central defenders Cubarsi and Aymeric Laporte the task of bottling him up. On the other side, Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal has been a sensation of the tournament with his ability to tear opposition defences apart.
The two sides have a bloody history and a recent rivalry that tilts toward Spain. At the Euro 2024 semifinal, Spain knocked France out 2-1 in Munich, and in June 2025 Spain beat France 5-4 in an epic UEFA Nations League semifinal thriller, with a brace from Lamine Yamal alongside goals from Nico Williams, Mikel Merino and Pedri, against which Mbappe, Rayan Cherki and Randal Kolo Muani fought hard but lost. So there is no doubt that a fire of revenge will burn in Mbappe and his team-mates before they take the field in Dallas. Away from football, the two countries’ centuries of conflict ended with the 1659 Treaty of the Pyrenees, and today, under the European Union and NATO, they are close partners exchanging about 100 billion euros of goods and services a year. All eyes are now on this blockbuster Dallas semifinal to see who will smile their way to the mega final in New Jersey, New York, where the winner of England versus Messi’s Argentina awaits.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report