The Spanish national team booked a ticket to the round of 16 of the 2026 World Cup, with a big victory over its Austrian counterpart by three goals without reply, in the match that brought them together on Thursday evening within the competitions of the round of 32 of the tournament.
The Spanish national team imposed its control over the course of the match from the first minutes, possessing the ball and creating many chances, while the Austrian team relied on the defensive bloc and counter-attack attempts to reduce the danger of the "Matadors".
Spain's attempts continued until the 36th minute, when Mikel Oyarzabal opened the scoring after a successful follow-up to an elaborate cross sent by full-back Marc Cucurella, giving his country a well-deserved advantage before half-time.
Just before the break, Alex Baina came close to doubling the score, but Austria goalkeeper Alexander Schlager made a brilliant save to keep the lead at one goal until the end of the first half.
Spain meet Portugal
In the second half, the Spanish national team continued its attacking pressure, and Pedro Boro succeeded in scoring the second goal at the 66th minute, after he rose to Alex Baena's cross and turned it into the net with a powerful header, strengthening his country's progress.
Despite falling behind by two goals, the Austrian team was unable to return to the atmosphere of the match, in light of Spain's clear superiority in possession and offensive organization, in addition to the defensive solidity that limited the danger of Austrian attempts.
One minute before the final whistle, Mikel Oyarzabal reiterated La Roja's superiority, scoring his second and third personal goals for his country in the 89th minute, sealing a wide victory with a clean sheet.
With this win, the Spanish national team secured qualification to the round of 16 of the 2026 World Cup, where it will play the Portugal national team, which beat Croatia 2-1, while the Austrian team bid farewell to the tournament after its campaign ended at the round of 32.
Unbeaten record with De La Fuente
Under coach Luis de la Fuente, Spain continued their remarkable record in major tournaments (World Cup and European Cup), as they were unbeaten in 11 matches, during which they achieved 10 wins to one draw.
Only two European coaches, Emi Jacquet and Louis van Gaal, surpass this number in the history of the two tournaments, with 12 matches without defeat each.
The Spanish team performed perfectly defensively against Austria, allowing no shot on target, in a precedent that is the first in the knockout rounds of the World Cup since the 2014 final between Germany and Argentina.
Austria, on the other hand, continued their defensive struggles, having conceded goals in their last 13 World Cup matches, to record the third-longest streak without a clean sheet for a European team in the history of the tournament, behind Switzerland (22 games between 1934 and 1994) and Sweden (15 games between 1974 and 1994).
Attacking surge in the 2026 World Cup
Spain have won three of their four World Cup matches in 2026, the same number of wins they have achieved in the previous three editions combined (one win in 2014, 2018 and 2022 each).
Mikel Oyarzabal made history by becoming the first Spanish player to score twice in a World Cup knockout match since Emilio Butragueño against Denmark in 1986.
He has also continued his goalscoring brilliance, scoring 16 goals for Spain since the beginning of 2025, surpassed only by Norway's Erling Haaland at the international level with 22 goals.
Amin Yamal continues to write history
Young star Lamine Yamal continued his brilliance, having won every match he started for Spain in major tournaments (9 out of 9 games), becoming the second European player to achieve this record in his first nine starts, after Belgium's Dries Mertens.
Spain also relied on Yamal, 18, and Pau Kuparci, 19, in the starting line-up, to become the first team to start a World Cup knockout match with teenagers since Brazil in the quarter-finals in 1958, when Pele, 17, and Altafini, 19, were involved.
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