Spain and Belgium secured their places in the quarterfinals of the 2026 World Cup on Monday, July 6th, setting up a compelling all-European clash. The date, kickoff time, and venue for the match have already been confirmed.
Spain opened Monday’s action by edging past Portugal in the Round of 16, with Mikel Merino heading home a stoppage-time winner to send La Roja through 1-0 in a tight, hard-fought contest.
The result also brought down the curtain on Cristiano Ronaldo’s World Cup career. The Portuguese captain confirmed after the match that 2026 was his last tournament, delivering an emotional farewell statement: “I have won three titles for Portugal. Before Cristiano, Portugal did not win a single title in history. I won Euro 2016, which for me is like winning a World Cup. I leave with a clear conscience and having given my best for Portugal.“
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Belgium, meanwhile, put on a dominant display to eliminate the host nation, beating the USMNT 4-1. A Mauricio Pochettino side well below their best was undone in part by costly individual errors, with Matt Freese and Chris Richards both contributing to the third and fourth goals respectively as the Red Devils made a statement in front of a stunned home crowd.
Romelu Lukaku #9 of Belgium celebrates with teammates after scoring the team’s fourth goal.
Spain and Belgium will face off on Friday, July 10th, at 3:00 PM ET, for the 2026 World Cup quarterfinals. This will be the first game between the two nations since a friendly back in 2016 that Spain won 2-0.
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This will be the third time the two nations have met at a World Cup, and one side will finally pull ahead in a previously level head-to-head record. Their first World Cup clash came at Mexico 1986, also in the quarterfinals, with Belgium advancing via penalty shootout. Spain got their revenge at the following edition, topping a shared group with a 2-1 victory.
The venue for the quarterfinal is SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, officially designated as Los Angeles Stadium for the duration of the 2026 World Cup under FIFA’s naming rights policy. Home of the NFL’s Los Angeles Rams and Los Angeles Chargers, the state-of-the-art facility holds 70,242 spectators and will be hosting its eighth and final World Cup match, having previously staged Spain’s dominant 3-0 group-stage win over Austria among other fixtures.