The wait is over. The 2026 FIFA World Cup final is just a few hours away, with the two finalists — Spain and Argentina — already confirmed. The final will be played at MetLife Stadium in the United States on Sunday. Whether Argentina finishes runner-up or Spain claims the title, we’ll know by tomorrow.
The high-voltage final pits the tournament’s best attack against its best defense. Defending champions Argentina have scored a tournament-high 19 goals in seven matches, while Euro 2024 champions Spain have conceded just one goal across the entire tournament, keeping six clean sheets. On paper, then, it’s the most devastating attack on one side against the strongest defense on the other.
Before the final, let’s take a look at the statistics from both teams:
Messi tops the individual charts
Lionel Messi sits at the top of the individual statistics. The Argentine captain is the tournament’s joint-top scorer with eight goals at this year’s World Cup, and is also joint-second in assists, with four.
Messi also leads in total shots (34) and is joint-highest in shots on target (19), while also posting the tournament’s highest expected goals (xG) tally and the most corners won (34). Even at 39, the superstar remains the biggest threat to opposing defenses.
Spain’s strength lies in team performance
While Argentina relies heavily on Messi, Spain’s success has been built on collective team performance. Spain’s top scorer is Mikel Oyarzabal, with five goals, while Dani Olmo and Marc Cucurella each have two assists. Oyarzabal (11) is also slightly ahead of Lamine Yamal (10) in shots on target.
Rodri’s dominance in passing
Spain’s dominance in possession and passing is clear through Rodri, who has completed the most successful passes in the tournament (694), followed by Aymeric Laporte (568) and Pau Cubarsí (566). For Argentina, Leandro Paredes (521) and Enzo Fernández (483) feature on that list.
Passing accuracy is tightly contested, though — the standout figures belong to Spain’s Cubarsí and Argentina’s Cristian Romero, both boasting a 97% pass completion rate.
As a team, however, Argentina completed more passes overall than Spain: the Albiceleste made 4,324 successful passes compared to Spain’s 4,156, though both sides recorded a 91 percent passing success rate.
Spain lead in defense, Argentina in attack
Argentina top the list for expected goals (xG) in the tournament, with 15.38, while Spain aren’t far behind in second place, with 14.96 xG.
Defensively, though, Spain are far superior, having conceded just one goal in the entire tournament. Goalkeeper Unai Simón has made 14 saves and 108 key defensive actions inside his own box. By comparison, Argentina’s Emiliano Martínez has made nine saves.
Spain in stamina, Argentina in speed
Among the players set to feature in Sunday’s final, Argentina’s Giuliano Simeone has the highest top speed recorded in the tournament, clocking 35.2 km/h. Rodri, meanwhile, leads all players in total distance covered, with the most sprints recorded by any player at the 2026 World Cup (919).
Among the finalists, Spanish full-back Cucurella recorded the most sprints (304), closely followed by Argentina’s Fernández (294).
The numbers point to a thrilling final
Argentina lead in attack, goals, and xG, while Spain lead in defense, clean sheets, and off-the-ball pressing. On one side, the tournament’s best attack, led by Messi; on the other, Spain’s near-impenetrable defense built around Rodri. All signs point to a thrilling final in New Jersey.
