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Tonight is the first of the 2026 World Cup semi-finals, and it has the potential to be an absolute classic.
France have one of the best attacks at the World Cup, with an embarrassment of riches to call upon. It’s also Bastille Day today, so what better time for Les Bleus to book themselves into another World Cup final?
Spain, conversely, have a phenomenally strong defence and are unbeaten in 36 games (including friendlies), the outright longest unbeaten run in their history (W27 D9), so it will be fascinating to see who comes out on top in Dallas.
Today’s SVQ looks ahead to France vs Spain, while our Ask Opta question is all about creators, and the Mystery Golden Boot takes us back to 1998.
First, though, a word from today’s sponsor…
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🔥 STAT - France’s Magnifique Attack
It hasn’t been an entirely predictable World Cup, but some things have been easier to anticipate than others.
When Didier Deschamps named his squad for the tournament, his forward options were Kylian Mbappé, Ousmane Dembélé, Michael Olise, Désiré Doué, Bradley Barcola, Maghnes Akliouche, Marcus Thuram, Rayan Cherki, and Jean-Philippe Mateta. Many will have thought: “Hmm, I bet they score the odd goal or two.”
And they have done just that. In fact, they have scored 16, the second most at the World Cup behind only Argentina (17).
Mbappé has particularly shone, with eight goals – making him joint-top scorer along with Lionel Messi – while Dembélé has also chipped in with five goals.