The 2026 FIFA World Cup, hosted across the United States, Canada and Mexico, is entering its final stretch, with two blockbuster semi-finals determining who will contest Sunday's final. In Atlanta on Wednesday, defending champions Argentina face England in a match laden with history, while in Arlington, Texas, France and Spain — the tournament's other unbeaten heavyweight — met on Tuesday in what happened to coincide with Bastille Day, France's national holiday marking the storming of the Bastille prison in 1789 and the ignition of the French Revolution.
The France-Spain semi-final at AT&T Stadium in Arlington drew thousands of supporters from both nations, who filled surrounding streets chanting and beating drums ahead of kick-off. France had advanced with a 2-0 win over Morocco, while Spain arrived in Texas on a remarkable unbeaten run of 37 matches, having edged Belgium 2-1 in the quarter-finals. The winner of that tie will meet the victor of the England-Argentina clash in Sunday's final.
In Atlanta, the England-Argentina fixture has stirred memories of two of football's most iconic encounters. Argentina will wear their dark blue away kit — the same strip worn in the 1986 quarter-final in Mexico, when Diego Maradona scored both the notorious