LOS ANGELES-(MaraviPost)-Spain booked their place in the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 16 after defeating Austria 3-0 on Thursday at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles.
Spain dominated possession from the opening whistle and produced another polished display to eliminate Austria in convincing fashion as they continued their pursuit of a second FIFA World Cup title.
The breakthrough came in the 36th minute when Mikel Oyarzabal headed home from Marc Cucurella’s cross to give Luis de la Fuente’s side a deserved lead before the break.
Spain doubled their advantage in the 66th minute through Pedro Porro, who powered in a header after another well worked attacking move that left the Austrian defence exposed.
Oyarzabal completed his brace in the 89th minute, calmly finishing a flowing team move to wrap up a comfortable 3-0 victory and send the Spanish supporters into celebration.
The result marked a significant milestone for Spain, who had not won a World Cup knockout match since beating the Netherlands in the 2010 final to lift their only World Cup trophy.
Since 2018, Spain had endured disappointment in the knockout stages, suffering a penalty shootout defeat to Russia in the Round of 16 at the 2018 World Cup before another shootout loss to Morocco at the same stage in Qatar four years later.
With the victory over Austria, Spain have finally ended that unwanted run and revived hopes of making another deep run in the tournament under head coach Luis de la Fuente.
Spain will now face the winner of early Friday Round of 32 match between Portugal and Croatia, with a place in the quarter finals at stake.
