Spain vs Argentina prediction: 13-2 Bet Builder tip, odds, team news | World Cup 2026

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Spain vs Argentina World Cup kick-off, date, TV channel and venue

Date Sunday, July 19
Kick-off 8pm
Venue MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey
Stage of Competition Final
TV channel BBC One and ITV1

Spain and Argentina have reached the World Cup final at the MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, where they will face each other in the game's biggest showpiece for the first time in 60 years.

Argentina were 2-1 winners when the teams met in the 1966 World Cup group stage.

Lionel Scaloni's side should feel confident after their dramatic 2-1 victory over England, although they face the biggest test against Spain, who were outstanding in their 2-0 success over France.

Spain vs Argentina betting tips & predictions

Best bet

Spain
2pts 13-10 Coral

Spain have improved over the course of the tournament and can take the final step by ending Argentina's unbeaten sequence of 12 World Cup games.

Both teams have a strong mentality, but Spain have looked the more accomplished side and are ready to add their name to the World Cup trophy.

Best player bet

Marc Cucurella over 0.5 assists
17-2 Coral, Ladbrokes

Spain vs Argentina World Cup match preview 

Spain have been underappreciated for much of the 2026 World Cup, but they showed immense quality in their semi-final success over France and can clear the last hurdle by defeating Argentina.

Reaching a World Cup final is never easy and Spain's journey got off to a rocky start when they were held to a goalless draw by Cape Verde in their opening Group H fixture.

They were below their best against the Blue Sharks, who earned a share of the points thanks to some dogged defending and a series of smart stops from veteran goalkeeper Vozinha.

But Spain quickly learned from the experience and their impressive response – a 4-0 victory over Saudi Arabia – turned out to be a more reliable barometer of a team who had continued to excel after their success at Euro 2024.

Spain could not have had things much tougher at Euro 2024, where their run from the quarter-final to the final pitted them against Germany, France and England.

And their progress through to the World Cup final has been just as demanding with three top-ten ranked teams – Portugal, Belgium and France – among the beaten opponents.

Spain were the underdogs before their semi-final against France, but not in their eyes.

They set about their business with a typically assured and intense performance and never looked back from the 22nd minute when Mikel Oyarzabal swept them into the lead from the penalty spot.

France had been acclaimed as the most impressive team in the tournament, but they struggled to find a response as La Roja went from strength to strength.

Despite the magnitude of the game, Spain showed no signs of nerves and they won the match with ease.

And it is their mentality, alongside their obvious quality, which could be too much for Argentina to cope with.

Argentina came out of their highly-charged semi-final against England as worthy winners, but their performance for large parts of the game should give their backers a cause for concern.

The emotion of the evening seemed to get to Lionel Scaloni's side, who were far more interested in tactical fouling rather than getting on the ball and looking to stretch a suspect English defence.

It took an England goal to change the dynamic and, luckily for Argentina, it arrived with plenty of time left on the clock.

Argentina's response was to get on the ball and start to play, but England's instinct was to drop deep and ty to hold out.

In the end, Argentina could and probably should have won by a wider margin, but their overall performance was not one that would have Spain boss Luis de la Fuente fearing the worst.

Argentina's reliance on Lionel Messi, 39, continued as he took advantage of the extra space afforded to him and contributed a couple of superb assists.

But the South Americans had been given a boost by a passive England performance which will bear no resemblance to the way that Spain will go about their business.

While England lacked the self-confidence and perhaps the energy to finish the job, Spain should have no such issues.

Their midfield options – from the start and off the bench – have enabled them to have control in every game, and a familiar pattern could unfold at the weekend, with Argentina forced to play in a counter-attacking style.

Argentina will have to defend with full focus and discipline and wait for Messi to try to come up with more moments of magic.

The Albiceleste will do everything, by fair means or foul, to hold on to their title, but a technically superior and polished Spain side should be too strong.

Cucurella can show his creative side

Spain impressed in every department in their victory over France, but their full backs – Pedro Porro and Marc Cucurella – were especially impressive.

Porro popped up with the decisive second goal, but both played with energy and were as impressive with their defensive work as they were going forward.

Cucurella contributed two assists earlier in the tournament and that tally may be about to increase.

Bet Builder

Spain vs Argentina

Sunday, 19 July, 20:00

Lamine Yamal

To Score Or Assist

Leandro Paredes

To Be Shown a Card

Under 3.5 Goals

Over/Under 3.5 Goals

£10 returns ≈ £73.63

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Spain vs Argentina World Cup Bet Builder tips

Lamine Yamal to score or assist

The best could be yet to come from the talented teenager, who may be about to take centre stage

Leandro Paredes to be carded

The feisty midfielder does a lot of Argentina's dirty work and is an obvious card candidate

Under 3.5 goals

Spain have the best defensive record in the tournament and they can keep things tight in a low-scoring final

Pays out at 13-2 with Paddy Power

Click for more info on our World Cup final Bet Builder 

Key stats for Spain vs Argentina

♦ Spain have won three of their last four matches against Argentina
♦ Spain are unbeaten in their last 37 matches
♦ La Roja have won 11 of their last 13 competitive games
♦ Spain have kept clean sheets in 13 of their last 17 fixtures
♦ Argentina have gone five games without keeping a clean sheet

Spain vs Argentina betting odds

Sign up with bet365 to bet on tonight's match. Here are the latest odds:

Odds correct at time of publishing

Want more top World Cup betting advice? Make sure you take a look at Racing Post Sport's World Cup 2026 tips for more of the latest picks from our experts.

Spain vs Argentina team news and predicted line-ups

Spain

Pedro Porro (hamstring) is expected to be fit despite failing to finish the game against France. Marcos Llorente stands by for a potential recall at right-back in the unlikely event Porro misses out. Lamine Yamal sat out training on Thursday but should start on the right wing.

Predicted line-up (4-2-3-1): Simon; Porro, Cubarsi, Laporte, Cucurella; Rodri, Ruiz; Yamal, Olmo, Baena; Oyarzabal
Rest of squad: E Garcia, J Garcia, Pedri, Grimaldo, Iglesias, Llorente, Merino, Munoz, Pino, Pubill, Gavi, Raya, Torres, Williams, Zubimendi

Argentina

Nicolas Tagliafico should keep his place at left-back as Facundo Medina (calf) hasn't started since the round of 32.

Predicted line-up (4-1-4-1): E Martinez; Molina, Romero, Lisandro Martinez, Tagliafico; Paredes; Simeone, Fernandez, Mac Allister, Alvarez; Messi
Rest of squad: Almada, Barco, De Paul, Gonzalez, Lo Celso, Lopez, Lautaro Martinez, Medina, Montiel, Musso, Otamendi, Palacios, Paz, Rulli, Senesi

Read more:

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FAQs

When is Spain vs Argentina at the Fifa World Cup 2026?

Spain vs Argentina takes place on Sunday, July 19 and kicks-off at 8pm BST.

Where is Spain vs Argentina being played?

The venue for the game is MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford.

What TV channel is Spain vs Argentina on?

BBC One and ITV1 are showing the game live in the UK.

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