Spain secured its second World Cup title with a dramatic 1-0 victory over Argentina in a hard-fought final at MetLife Stadium. Ferran Torres netted the decisive goal in the 106th minute, capitalizing on a late opportunity in extra time. The win marks Spain's first World Cup triumph since 2010.
Argentina's challenge was significantly hampered by a red card to Enzo Fernández, who received his second yellow card in stoppage time, reducing his team to 10 players for the remainder of the match. Despite the disadvantage, goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez made a tournament-high 11 saves, coming close to replicating his heroics from four years prior.
The match statistics revealed a stark contrast in offensive output. Argentina failed to register a single official shot on goal throughout the entire game, and notably, recorded zero shots of any kind through the first 90 minutes—a feat not seen in a World Cup final in 60 years. In comparison, Spain recorded 12 shots on target.
Torres, who entered the match as a substitute in the 62nd minute, expressed relief after scoring the winning goal. "All finals are difficult, but when you have Messi on the other team, you always get nervous," Torres said. "But we always depended on ourselves, our football, and we’ve shown it again. Destiny was written today. We were going to win."