FIFA World Cup 2026: 38 and beyond: Spain is the world champion and the greatest unbeaten team in the history of football | Football news

bol celebrated a magnificent achievement as they secured their second World Cup title with a narrow 1-0 win over Argentina, thanks to a landmark second-half goal from Ferran Torres. The win highlighted Spain’s astonishing 38-game unbeaten run, surpassing Italy’s long-standing record. (Photo/ANI)

They came to New Jersey as history makers. They left as world champions.Spain beat Argentina 1-0 in a tense, dramatic World Cup final at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford on Sunday night, a second-half goal from Ferran Torres separating the two sides and giving Spain its second World Cup title, 16 years after its first in South Africa in 2010.But the trophy wasn’t the only piece of history made on Sunday night. With victory in the final, Spain extended their unbeaten run to 38 consecutive games in all competitions, surpassing Italy’s record of 37 games and becoming the team with the longest unbeaten run in the history of European and South American international football. Not a single team from both continents has lasted longer without defeat.Torres, who endured a difficult tournament by his high standards before this final, scored the most important goal of his career. Receiving a perfectly timed pass from Pedri on the edge of the Argentine penalty area in the 67th minute, the Manchester City striker took one touch to control and drilled a precise low shot past Emiliano Martínez into the bottom corner. MetLife Stadium, filled with red and yellow, erupted.Argentina pushed. Lionel Messi, playing the last game of his international career, drove forward more than once, creating chances and demanding the ball as always. But Spain’s defence, six clean sheets in six previous matches, the best defensive record in World Cup history, did not collapse on the biggest night of all. Unai Simón made two key saves in the last ten minutes to keep the goal out and send the trophy to Spain.For Messi, it is a painful end to a career of exceptional beauty. He finished the 2026 World Cup with eight goals and four assists, one of the highest individual tournament statistics in World Cup history. But Argentina’s second consecutive title was not to be.For Spain, unbeaten in 38 games, European champions in 2024 and now world champions in 2026, the record books belong entirely to them.Italy’s record stood for five years. Spain broke through on the biggest stage with the World Cup trophy in hand.