Match report
Merino's late strike sends Spain past Belgium into World Cup semi-finals
Spain edged past Belgium 2-1 in the World Cup quarter-finals at SoFi Stadium, with a stoppage-time winner from substitute Mikel Merino settling a contest that had been level since before half-time. The result kept Luis de la Fuente's side unbeaten in the tournament and ended Belgium's run under Rudi Garcia.
AI-assisted match report written from official match data.
Fabián Ruiz put Spain ahead in the 30th minute, but Belgium responded quickly through Charles De Ketelaere, who converted an assist from Timothy Castagne in the 41st minute to send the sides in level at half-time. Spain dominated for long spells without finding a breakthrough until Merino struck in the 88th minute to decide the match.
Spain controlled possession throughout, dominating the ball at 68 percent, and produced far more of the game's chances, registering 16 shots to Belgium's five. Thibaut Courtois was repeatedly called upon in the Belgium goal, and his performance kept the scoreline respectable for long periods despite the disparity in territory and attempts.
Courtois earned the highest rating on the pitch at 7.9 despite conceding twice, a reflection of the volume of work he faced as Spain poured forward. De Ketelaere's leveller, scored from Castagne's assist, also stood out as the away side's most telling contribution.
Spain's 68 percent share of possession underlined their control of the contest even before Merino's decisive intervention.
Spain beat Belgium 2–1 (half-time 1–1).
Spain met Belgium in the World Cup (Quarter-finals). Kick-off was Friday, 10 July 2026, 19:00 UTC at SoFi Stadium. Referee: Michael Oliver.
Key moments
- 30' Goal: Fabián Ruiz — 1–0 · Watch Fabián Ruiz's goal video (30')
- 41' Goal: Charles De Ketelaere (assist: Timothy Castagne) — 1–1 · Watch Charles De Ketelaere's goal video (41')
- 88' Goal: Mikel Merino — 2–1 · Watch Mikel Merino's goal video (88')
Starting line-ups
Spain (4-2-3-1)
- 23 Unai Simón
- 24 Marc Cucurella
- 14 Aymeric Laporte
- 22 Pau Cubarsí
- 12 Pedro Porro
- 8 Fabián Ruiz
- 16 Rodri (c)
- 15 Álex Baena
- 10 Dani Olmo
- 19 Lamine Yamal
- 21 Mikel Oyarzabal
Belgium (4-2-3-1)
Sirius · Why these numbers
Before kick-off Sirius gave Spain 45%, the draw 23%, Belgium 32%. It finished Spain 2–1 Belgium.
A slight rating edge to Spain, no home ground in play — Spain are a shade stronger on our strength rating, and Belgium's hot finishing due to cool on top gives Spain the lean. The draw at 23% is held down by a high-scoring environment.
Why Spain at 45%?
Spain sit 98 points higher on our strength rating — 2139 to 2041. Sides with a 50–100-point rating edge at home won 50.5% of 10,257 such games. Belgium scored +0.38 goals per game beyond chance-quality lately — hot streaks like that have cooled off. Visitors running this hot went on to win 29.2% of 1,406 games, vs 28.9% for visitors finishing normally.
Why only 45%?
A final at a neutral venue: Spain lose the usual home lift, so the class read is re-centred. On grounds we detect as neutral, listed-home sides won 44.6% of 26,592 games vs 45.2% at real homes.
Why is the draw only 23%?
With a rating gap this size the draw starts at 26.5%. These teams' recent games average 3.3 goals — a high-scoring environment. Games in that environment drew 22.8% of 16,681. The goals environment takes 2.4 points off the draw. The cool-off factor takes 2.4 points off the draw.
What did we measure but not count?
Belgium have gained 68 strength-rating points over their last 10 games. Momentum is measured but not yet proven: climbing sides won 41.4% of 11,970 such games vs 40.7% class-expected — inside the noise band, so it stays at 0 points until the receipt clears its evidence bar. Spain (18 fully-tracked matches with us) and Belgium (17) carry strength ratings anchored to the official international ratings list, so the class read stands on far more than our own short records. National sides play too few games for a record built from scratch, so their rating chain starts from the published international ratings instead of a blind first guess.
Sirius probabilities, frozen at kick-off. Analysis, not betting advice. How Sirius is doing this season · Full breakdown, evidence cards and squad news in the Match Insights tab
What the press said
💥🇪🇸 Mikel Merino wins it AGAIN for Spain to eliminate Belgium and fly to World Cup semi finals! 💔🇧🇪 Who’s been your Man of the Match? https://t.co/XyV9vzqgnj
❤️ 15kopen on X ↗
🚨⭐️ OFFICIAL: Lamine Yamal, FIFA Man of the Match for Spain-Belgium. https://t.co/hbDaRMT6sn
❤️ 8.2kopen on X ↗
Mikel Merino sends Spain into the World Cup semi-finals after a late 2-1 win over Belgium. Spain will now face France for a place in the final.🇪🇸 https://t.co/T9m1aREXu5
❤️ 847open on X ↗
About this match
On this page: the Spain vs Belgium final score and result, goal highlights and video clips of every goal, who scored, starting lineups, match stats and the full match report from this World Cup fixture.
- Who scored and when — a goal-by-goal timeline of the match.
- Match stats — possession, shots, expected goals (xG), corners and cards.
- Starting lineups and player ratings for both teams.
- Head-to-head record and recent form for both sides.
- Watch Fabián Ruiz's goal against Belgium (30').
- Watch Charles De Ketelaere's goal against Spain (41').
- Watch Mikel Merino's goal against Belgium (88').
Watch the goals: goal highlights and video clips of every goal from Spain 2–1 Belgium. Explore more on the Spain and Belgium team pages or the World Cup page.
Quick answers
›What was the final score of Spain vs Belgium?
Spain beat Belgium 2–1 (half-time 1–1).
›Who scored in Spain vs Belgium?
Fabián Ruiz (30') for Spain; Charles De Ketelaere (41') for Belgium; Mikel Merino (88') for Spain.
›Where can I watch Spain vs Belgium highlights?
Goal highlights and video clips from Spain 2–1 Belgium are on this page — open the videos tab to watch every goal.