The final dispute between the national teams of Argentina and Spainrespectively American and European champions in 2024; It has not been made official and Uncertainty is growing over whether or not it will be played next March During the first date of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) 2026 for international matches.
The only entity to have announced the game is the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL) in its 2026 calendar Its date was set at the end of the third month of next year, without specifying a specific date. Neither FIFA nor UEFA have officially expressed their opinion on the issue.
Newspaper information specified the match between the Argentines and the Spaniards On Friday, March 27 or Saturday, March 28, 2026, at Lusail Stadium in Doha, Qatar; The same one in which Albiceleste was crowned champion in the recent ecumenical event.
Initially, there was speculation that the intercontinental clash had not become official because the Red Fury were still competing in the European qualifiers to qualify for the next World Cup, and if they were to contest the qualifiers, they would do so on the same date as the final. However, combined Luis de la Fuente He joined directly as the leader of Group E, and is therefore available on the specified date.
And then? Without obstacles to the collision of the first and second places in the FIFA classification, The duel is yet to be seen, and as the days go by the chances of it not being played increase because although it has not been announced publicly, none of the countries agree to face each other for the title a few months before the 2026 World Cup. In fact, this will be the last match the team will play before their coaches put together a 26-man squad to achieve the big goal next year.
In the period leading up to the World Cup draw in Washington, the Argentine national team coach confirmed, Lionel Scaloni He was consulted about Finalissima and was not optimistic about his dispute: “Not because of discomfort in the game, I think it could have been played earlier. But now we wait. We have no news, really. “I traveled with Luis de la Fuente, who in addition to being the coach of Spain is my friend… He gave me a training session and told me that he did not have official confirmation of the match either.”
If the final is not held, Argentina and Spain could face each other in the World Cup, with FIFA wanting them to be stars in the final because if they both top their group, they will be on opposite sides of the draw so they will only meet if they agree to a decisive showdown.
Both countries have faced each other 14 times in history, with six wins for each team and two draws. The peculiarity is that 13 matches were friendly and only one was in an official tournament. The first meeting between them was in the 1966 World Cup in England, and Albiceleste won 2-1, with a score of 2-1. Louis Artem. The last time they saw each other was in 2018 when Red Fury won 6-1.
The Albiceleste team was crowned American champion in 2024 for the second time in a row And sixteenth place overall, beating Colombia 1-0 in the final with a goal from Lautaro Martinez. They went unbeaten with five wins and a draw with a subsequent win on penalties. He scored nine goals and conceded only one goal. His top scorer was “Toro” Martinez with five conquests.
For its part, Spain did the same thing in the European Championship for the Old Continent, in what was the fourth dedication in its history. They won the title in Germany after a 2-1 victory over England, runner-up for the second consecutive edition, at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin. The winner’s goals were converted by Nico Williams and Mikel Oyarzabal, while Cole Palmer Temporarily associated with the Three Lions.
The World Cup is the successor to the defunct Artemio Franchi Trophy. The first edition under the new name was held on June 1, 2022, in the run-up to the World Cup in Qatar. The team is led by Lionel Scaloni He took advantage of the Azzurra’s bad moment and became champion after winning 3-0 With goals from Lautaro Martinez, Angel Di Maria and Paulo Dybala.
the Artemio Franchi Cup Only two editions were held, in 1985 and 1993. In the first, on August 21, 1985, Uruguay and France faced each other in the Parc des Princes in Paris and the cup went to the local team after a 2-0 victory with two goals from Dominique Rocheteau and Jose Torre.
In 1993, Argentina and Denmark met. The match was held in the stadium Jose Maria Minilla The Mar del Plata match on February 24 ended in a 1-1 draw thanks to goals Nestor Craviotto v. and Claudio Caniggia. However, the Albiceleste team won on penalties and this was the last title Diego Armando Maradona With the Argentine national team.