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After 103 matches and 46 eliminations, the 2026 World Cup comes down to finalists Spain and Argentina.
What an incredible pairing it is.
The finale pits the European Championship holders against the incumbent World Cup winners.
Its also the first final between Spanish-speaking nations in almost a full century.
And it links 19-year-old sensation Lamine Yamal with 39-year-old legend Lionel Messi.
That connection feels like a prophecy fulfilled in a 2007 chance encounter, Messi took a photo with baby Yamal for Barcelonas charity calendar.
Who couldve seen them sharing the biggest stage in the sport one day? Advertisement There is a lot of pageantry around the final match as well, with the World Cup closing ceremony and the tournaments first-ever halftime show.
Heres what American audiences can expect before tuning in for Sundays appointment television.
All times listed are ET.
How to watch Spain vs.
Argentina in the World Cup final - Venue: MetLife Stadium East Rutherford, N.J.
(New York/New Jersey Stadium) - Date: Sunday, July 19 - Time: 3 p.m.
- TV (U.S.): Fox and Telemundo - Streaming (U.S.): Fubo (Stream Now) Fox and Telemundo are free over the air.
Fox is also available with a Fox One subscription.
Telemundo is also available with a Peacock subscription.
World Cup closing ceremony and halftime show The closing ceremony begins at 1:30 p.m.
in the Meadowlands, which is 90 minutes before kickoff.
The artist Post Malone is its headliner.
Among others on its call sheet are actor Tom Cruise, streamer IShowSpeed, and singers Laura Pausini, Nicole Scherzinger and Robbie Williams.
Jennifer Hudson is slated to sing The Star-Spangled Banner, too.
Match intermission features an audacious FIFA experiment.
The inaugural World Cup halftime show has BTS, Justin Bieber, Madonna and Shakira as co-headliners, curated by Coldplay frontman Chris Martin on behalf of the Global Citizen Education Fund.
Performers also include Burna Boy and the conductor Gustavo Dudamel.
Concerns linger over potential damage to the MetLife Stadium grass.
The show organizers are constructing and deconstructing a stage on top of the pitch.
Theres additional worry about the increased break time, as players are used to 15-minute halftimes.
With the match kicking off at 3 p.m., the halftime show should start somewhere in the range of 3:45-4:15 p.m.
Spain vs.
Argentina broadcast details The English-language presentation is on Fox.
Play-by-play voice John Strong and color commentator Stu Holden are together for their third career World Cup final.
This is their 21st match of the 2026 tourney.
Tom Rinaldi and Jenny Taft lead a group of five reporters for the days events.
Advertisement Foxs four-hour pregame program commences at 11 a.m.
from Brooklyn Bridge Park in New York City, then shifts over to the stadium in northern New Jersey.
Throughout this tournament, the networks top studio team has been host Rebecca Lowe and the analyst trio of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Thierry Henry and Alexi Lalas.
Theyre joined by retired U.S.
players Landon Donovan and Carli Lloyd, plus former Danish goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel.
Timothee Chalamet has been teased as a celebrity guest.
And New York Giants quarterback Jameis Winston continues his stint as Foxs special correspondent, live from the NFL stadium he now calls home.
Telemundo has the Spanish-language call.
The full broadcast roster is on tap for this final, including Argentinas own Andres Cantor.
Telemundo coverage picks up at 9 a.m.
with Celebrando el Mundial, which is a blend of live music, cameos and World Cup highlights.
Spain vs.
Argentina on the pitch La Roja Manager Luis de la Fuente has his squad playing a disciplined, controlled game.
Goalkeeper Unai Simon has conceded one single goal across seven starts.
The Spanish lead this World Cup in turnovers forced, and they have the best possession control mark of any team beyond the group stage.
They cruised past Austria in the knockout opener, then edged out Portugal with substitute Mikel Merinos stoppage-time stunner.
Merino was the savior yet again in the quarterfinal match, as his goal in the 88th minute sealed a 2-1 victory versus Belgium.
Then Spain completely disoriented France throughout Tuesdays semifinal, shutting out the potent French attack.
Yamals craftiness in the box won a penalty, leading to a goal from Mikel Oyarzabal in the 22nd minute.
Pedro Porro followed with another in the second half.
Oyarzabal is the leading Spanish scorer at five goals, with Merino and Porro at two each.
Yamal has the most total shots at 23.
Spains excellent midfield is captained by Rodri.
La Albiceleste Argentina is led by a pair of Lionels.
Messi is the luminary captain, while Scaloni is the impassioned manager.
Advertisement The reigning champs have been through an emotional and euphoric few weeks.
It took until the 111th minute for them to separate from heavy underdog Cape Verde.
They were all but done for against Egypt, only to rally for three goals in 13 surreal minutes.
Argentina was tied with Switzerland well into stoppage time before Julian Alvarez found the back of the net.
Finally, a late 1-0 hole became a 2-1 celebration in Wednesdays semifinal shock of England breakthroughs from Enzo Fernandez and Lautaro Martinez were both assisted by Messi.
Messi leads the attack into this all-important final.
He also has a chance to secure the Golden Boot, though he now trails Kylian Mbappe in the race.
Its one of the few trophies that Messi has yet to win in more than two decades of dominance.
Emiliano Martinez stands between the goalposts at the other end.
He made an unforgettable last-minute save in the 2022 final versus France.
Spain vs.
Argentina World Cup history These two have 14 prior meetings, but 13 of those were friendly exhibitions.
Their one World Cup clash was in 1966, when Argentina beat Spain 2-1 to open the group stage.
All three goals, including Luis Artimes brace for Argentina, came during the second half.
Each nation has a rich legacy in the sport, but one side claims much more on its World Cup mantle.
Argentina has been to a staggering seven finals now, with trophy lifts in 1978, 1986 and 2022 and runner-up finishes in 1930, 1990 and 2014.
Meanwhile, this is Spains second appearance in a World Cup final.
Its lone title was the 2010 tiki-taka run.
A fourth championship would tie Argentina with Germany and Italy for No.
2 all-time, behind Brazil with five.
Spains second championship would put it alongside France and Uruguay in a tie for fifth.
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