Spain advanced to the semifinal of the 2026 football World Cup after a 2:1 victory over Belgium in the quarterfinal. The decisive goal came from substitute Mikel Merino, who late in the match capitalized on a mistake by Belgian reserve goalkeeper Senne Lammens. Spain will face France in the next match. Tagesspiegel ↗
Belgium was hit by a key change in goal. Thibaut Courtois, the team's mainstay and Real Madrid goalkeeper, had to withdraw in the 70th minute due to a muscle injury. Up to that point he had made four saves. He left the pitch visibly affected, and was consoled on the bench by coach Rudi Garcia and his teammates. Sueddeutsche Zeitung ↗
The 24-year-old Lammens took over in goal and faltered on the decisive goal. Spain had previously led through a goal by Fabián Ruiz, with Belgium equalizing through Charles De Ketelaere. It was the first goal Spain had conceded at this tournament, but they nevertheless avoided extra time. BBC News ↗
Merino followed up his previous decisive strike against Portugal and once again proved decisive as a substitute. Belgium's exit in the quarterfinal is also seen as the possible end of a notable generation of the national team. Spain will fight for a place in the final against France on July 14. Die Zeit ↗
Merino sends Spain past Belgium into World Cup semifinal
This summary was generated by artificial intelligence. It may contain inaccuracies. Please verify information in the original sources below.
Sources (19)
Fußball-WM: Das war die WM-Nacht: Merino schießt Spanien ins Halbfinale
Tagesspiegel
| 05:02 11.07.
Fußball-WM: Das war die WM-Nacht: Merino schießt Spanien ins Halbfinale
Die Zeit
| 05:00 11.07.
Pressestimmen zum Halbfinaleinzug Spaniens: »Spanien hat wieder einmal Glück, dass der Heilige Merino auftaucht«
Die Zeit
| 04:58 11.07.
Fußball-WM: Der „heilige“ Merino: Pressestimmen zum Spanien-Sieg
Tagesspiegel
| 00:50 11.07.
Schon wieder Merino: Edeljoker erlöst Spanien mit spätem Tor nach belgischem Keeper-Drama
Tagesspiegel
| 00:49 11.07.
WM-Viertelfinale: Merino erlöst Spanien: Belgiens Torwart-Drama
Tagesspiegel
| 23:01 10.07.
WM-Viertelfinale: Merino erlöst Spanien: Belgiens Torwart-Drama
Die Zeit
| 23:00 10.07.
Belgien bei der Fußball-WM: Das Drama des Thibaut Courtois
Sueddeutsche Zeitung
| 04:41 11.07.
Fußball-WM: Gegentor für Spanien? Macht doch nichts!
Sueddeutsche Zeitung
| 23:35 10.07.
Supersub Merino strikes again as Spain edge out Belgium
RTE News
| 23:32 10.07.
Las lágrimas de Courtois y el debut, con error, del novato Lammens: la lesión que cambió el España - Bélgica
El Mundo
| 23:27 10.07.
Spanien biegt Belgien dank Jokertor spät 2:1 und steht im WM-Halbfinale
Der Standard
| 23:11 10.07.
WM 2026: Spanien schlägt Belgien und steht im WM-Halbfinale
Die Zeit
| 23:11 10.07.
Belgium megszakította Spanyolország sorozatát, de megállítani így sem tudta az Európa-bajnokot
Index.hu
| 22:59 10.07.
Le lacrime di Courtois: il portiere del Belgio s’infortuna e lascia il campo piangendo
La Repubblica
| 22:47 10.07.
Lammens' error spells end for Belgium's golden generation
BBC News
| 01:14 11.07.
Sin Courtois, Bélgica se descompone: “Sentía que no me harían un segundo gol”
El Pais
| 00:04 11.07.
Fußball-WM 2026: Belgien unterliegt Spanien: Ein belgischer Nackenschlag zu viel
Spiegel.de
| 23:37 10.07.
Coupe du monde 2026 : l’Espagne punit la Belgique sur le fil et affrontera les Bleus en demi-finale le 14 juillet
Le Figaro
| 23:05 10.07.
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