Match at a glance
ESP / BEL17Attempts5
8On target2
67.9%Possession32.1%
90.1%Pass accuracy77.9%
13Fouls committed18
2Yellow cards2
0Red cards0
5Corners1
Spain 2–1 Belgium: 2026 World Cup match result
2026 Quarter-finalAsk about this match
Spain won in normal time
- Fabián Ruiz30'
- Mikel Merino88'
- Charles De Ketelaere41'
Match in one glance
SpainBelgiumGoalCard
Spain
Belgium
0′HTFT
First half0′–45′Second half45′–90′
How the lead moved
ESP BEL- 30'
Fabián Ruiz1 ESP - 41'
Charles De Ketelaerelevel - 88'Mikel Merino1 ESP
Spain led for the closing passage. Plotted from recorded goal times only — per-minute pressure is not in the source data.
Recorded standouts
Source actions, no ratings- 1FRFabián Ruiz 1 goal · 1 on target
- 2MMMikel Merino 1 goal · 1 on target
- 3CDCharles De Ketelaere 1 goal · 1 on target
- 4TCTimothy Castagne 1 assist · 1 fouls won
- 5
Thibaut Courtois 4 saves
What separated the teams
Finishing
Spain had the scoring edge
11.8%Goal conversion20.0%
Territory
Spain controlled more of the ball
67.9%Possession32.1%
Defensive workload
Belgium made more recorded interventions
21Saves, interceptions, clearances49
Straight from the completed match report — no xG, tracking or player ratings.
Complete match timeline
SpainBelgiumGoalCardSubstitution
Spain
Belgium
0′HTFT
First half0′–45′Second half45′–90′
Event feed
14 eventsKey phases
Goals in each periodFirst half
0′–45′1 – 1F. Ruiz 30' · C. De Ketelaere 41'
Second half
45′–90′1 – 0M. Merino 88'
Spain
4-2-3-1PP
12Pedro PorroMC
24Marc CucurellaPC
22Pau CubarsíAL
14Aymeric LaporteFR
8Fabián Ruiz
16Rodri
21Listed formation · positions are schematic
Belgium
4-2-3-1TC
21Timothy CastagneMD
5Maxim De CuyperNN
25Nathan NgoyBM
4Brandon MecheleNR
23Nicolas RaskinHV
20Hans VanakenCD
17Charles De KetelaereListed formation · positions are schematic
Select a player portrait to see the recorded shirt number, position and lineup context.
Attendance70,492
RefereeMichael Oliver
ESP4-2-3-1
BEL4-2-3-1
Result statusFull time
Complete performance breakdown
ESPBEL
Attacking output
Volume, accuracy and finishing from the recorded attempts.
17Attempts5
8On target2
5Blocked shots2
47.1%Shot accuracy40.0%
11.8%Goal conversion20.0%
Goals divided by attempts
Possession & passing
Control, circulation and progression of the ball.
67.9%Possession32.1%
598Passes completed243
90.1%Pass accuracy77.9%
2Crosses completed2
19Long balls completed20
Defensive work
Interventions made without treating workload as quality by itself.
1Saves6
6Tackles won6
50%Tackle success60%
5Interceptions9
15Clearances34
Discipline & pressure
Fouls, cards, offsides and set-piece pressure.
13Fouls committed18
3Offsides1
2Yellow cards2
0Red cards0
5Corners1
What separated the teams
Finishing
Spain had the scoring edge
11.8%Goal conversion20.0%
Territory
Spain controlled more of the ball
67.9%Possession32.1%
Defensive workload
Belgium made more recorded interventions
21Saves, interceptions, clearances49
Straight from the completed match report — no xG, tracking or player ratings.
Recorded standouts
Source actions, no ratings- 1FRFabián Ruiz 1 goal · 1 on target
- 2MMMikel Merino 1 goal · 1 on target
- 3CDCharles De Ketelaere 1 goal · 1 on target
- 4TCTimothy Castagne 1 assist · 1 fouls won
- 5Thibaut Courtois 4 saves
- 6SLSenne Lammens 2 saves
- 7
Unai Simón 1 save · 1 fouls won - 8
Lamine Yamal 2 on target · 4 fouls won - 9DODani Olmo 1 on target · 2 fouls won
- 10
Kevin De Bruyne 1 on target · 1 fouls won
Player leaders
Who led the recorded actions
1
GoalsFabián RuizMikel MerinoCharles De Ketelaere
FR
Fabián RuizMM
Mikel MerinoCD
Charles De Ketelaere1
AssistsTimothy Castagne
TC
Timothy Castagne6
ShotsLamine Yamal
Lamine Yamal2
On targetLamine Yamal
Lamine Yamal5
Fouls won
Jérémy Doku
Jérémy Doku4
SavesThibaut Courtois
Thibaut CourtoisDecisive moments
3 eventsTournament path
How both teams reached this match
SpainAll-time World Cup meetings
Spain vs Belgium, across editions
2ESP wins
1Draws
0BEL wins
3meetings
5–3goal balance
2knockout meetings
2026Spain 2–1 BelgiumQuarter-final
1990Belgium 1–2 SpainGroup stage
1986Spain 1–1 BelgiumQuarter-final
Source: ESPN completed match report, retrieved Aug 18, 2026. Derived percentages are calculated from the displayed source values; missing fields are omitted rather than estimated.
Source: ESPN completed match report. Tournament context cross-checked against FIFA sources listed in the dataset.