With France being the favorite to win the 2026 FIFA World Cup and Spain following behind, is the semifinal between the two powerhouses at AT&T Stadium more important than the final itself?
“It’s pretty cool seeing No. 1 versus No. 2, right?” New York Giants quarterback and 2026 FIFA World Cup Fox Sports roaming correspondent Jameis Winston told the Star-Telegram. “But is this No. 2? I guess all the bracket is fit. It’s one, two, three and four, right?”
Spain was ranked No. 3 in the world, then briefly moved up to No. 2 after its quarterfinal victory over Belgium before Argentina reclaimed the spot with its quarterfinal victory over Switzerland.
Entering the match, France was a +150 favorite to win the World Cup. Spain followed at +310, ahead of England (+310) and Argentina (+360), according to ESPN. Ultimately, the odds won’t matter much, as only one team from each side can advance.
Kyle Bach, a fan donning a Team USA jersey, explained his excitement for the France-Spain semifinal, saying it was “the real final.”
“It’s got all of the best players out there,” Bach said. “I’m a big fan of England, but you know, this is Spain and France. It’s a classic. France has Kylian Mbappé, and at the World Cup, you can’t go wrong with that.”
Jonah Grizelle, a Spain fan from Cedar Hill, Texas, said the semifinal was “not the real final,” but said it may be the most important matchup with two global superstars going at it in Mbappé and Spain’s Lamine Yamal.
“It is definitely the two best teams going at it,” Grizelle said. “... As much as I want Spain to win, France is the best team.”
Abel Guillermo, a fan from Grand Prairie, took the opposite stance.
“I’m more excited about [the final] when it does happen,” Guillermo said. “I think that game is more important than the semifinal here. But I don’t expect them to do [the FIFA World Cup] in Dallas for quite some time, so the fact that I’m here now is incredible.”
Winston said that, ultimately, fan opinion and odds don’t matter. He emphasized that one thing does: actions.
“Whoever goes out there and plays the best wins the day,” Winston said. “And that’s why I love the comparison of American football to the proper football, the real football, is because the best team that shows up for that day is the team that wins, no matter what the statistics say.
“No matter what type of players you have, you only get one shot. So, anything can happen.”
Game schedule dates, times, locations
NEXT UP: Game dates, times, locations, channel
Rangers ▶
July 7 Rangers 8, L.A. Angels 3
July 8 L.A. Angels 13, Rangers 1
July 9 Rangers 7, L.A. Angels 6
July 10 Rangers 7, Houston 3
July 11 Houston 9, Rangers 3
July 12 Rangers 6, Houston 5
All-Star break
July 17 at Atlanta, 6:15 p.m., CW
July 18 at Atlanta, 3:10 p.m., RSN
July 19 at Atlanta, 12:35 p.m., RSN
July 20 vs. Chicago White Sox, 7:05 p.m., RSN
July 21 vs. Chicago White Sox, 7:05 p.m., RSN
July 22 vs. Chicago White Sox, 7:05 p.m., RSN
Wings▶
July 2 Wings 86, Connecticut 83
July 5 Wings 89, Toronto 76
July 7 Wings 88, New York 77
July 10 Wings 108, Toronto 95
July 12 Wings 96, Chicago 91
July 16 vs. New York, 8 p.m., Amazon Prime Video
July 19 vs. Los Angeles, 12 p.m., ABC
July 22 at Portland, 9 p.m., KFAA, USA, CNBC
All-Star break
July 29 vs. Atlanta, 7 p.m., KFAA, USA
July 31 at Washington, 6:30 p.m., Ion
TCU Football ▶
2026 season
Aug. 29 vs. North Carolina (at Dublin), 11 a.m., ESPN
Sept. 12 vs. Grambling State, 7 p.m., ESPN+
Sept. 19 vs. Arkansas State, 7 p.m., ESPNU
Sept. 26 at Central Florida, TBA
Oct. 3 vs. BYU, TBA
Oct. 17 at Baylor, TBA
Oct. 24 vs. West Virginia, TBA
Oct. 31 vs. Kansas, TBA
Nov. 6 at Arizona, 9:15 p.m., ESPN
Nov. 14 vs. Kansas State, TBA
Nov. 21 vs. Utah, TBA
Nov. 26 at Texas Tech, 7 p.m., ESPN
Cowboys ▶
Sept. 13 at N.Y. Giants, 7:20 p.m., NBC
Sept. 20 vs. Washington, 3:25 p.m., Fox
Sept. 27 vs. Baltimore (at Rio de Janeiro), 3:25 p.m., CBS
Oct. 4 at Houston, 12 p.m., Fox
Oct. 8 vs. Tampa Bay, 7:15 p.m., Amazon Prime Video
Oct. 18 at Green Bay, 7:20 p.m., NBC
Oct. 26 at Philadelphia, 7:15 p.m., ESPN, ABC
Nov. 1 vs. Arizona, 12 p.m., Fox
Nov. 8 at Indianapolis, 12 p.m., Fox
Nov. 15 vs. San Francisco, 3:25 p.m., Fox
Nov. 22 vs. Tennessee, 12 p.m., Fox
Nov. 26 vs. Philadelphia, 3:30 p.m., Fox
Dec. 7 at Seattle, 7:15 p.m., ESPN, ABC
Dec. 20 at L.A. Rams, 3:25 p.m., CBS
Dec. 27 vs. Jacksonville, 7:20 p.m., NBC
Jan. 3 vs. N.Y. Giants, 12 p.m., Fox
Jan. 9 or 10 at Washington, TBA
World Cup ▶
All local matches at AT&T Stadium
Group stage
June 14 Japan 2, Netherlands 2 (Group F)
June 17 England 4, Croatia 2 (Group L)
June 22 Argentina 2, Austria 0 (Group J)
June 25 Japan 1, Sweden 1 (Group F)
June 27 Argentina 3, Jordan 1 (Group J)
Knockout round
June 30 Norway 2, Ivory Coast 1 (round of 32)
July 3 Egypt 1, Australia 1 (Egypt wins 4-2 on PKs) (round of 32)
July 6 Spain 1, Portugal 0 (round of 16)
July 14 Semifinal: France vs. Spain, 2 p.m., Fox
FC Dallas ▶
May 2 FC Dallas 2, NY Red Bulls 0
May 9 FC Dallas 3, Salt Lake 1
May 13 Vancouver 3, FC Dallas 2
May 16 FC Dallas 3, San Jose 2
May 23 FC Dallas 2, Colorado 1
World Cup break
July 22 at Portland, 9:30 p.m., Apple TV
July 25 at San Diego, 8:30 p.m., FS1, Apple TV
Aug. 1 at LA Galaxy, 9:30 p.m., Apple TV
Aug. 5 vs. Queretaro (at Mansfield Stadium), 7:30 p.m., Apple TV
Aug. 8 vs. Chivas de Guadalajara (at San Jose, Calif.), 8 p.m., Apple TV
Charles Baggarly is a high school sports editor and reporter for the Fort Worth Star Telegram. He graduated from TCU in 2023 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and served as TCU 360’s sports editor. Connect with Charles on Twitter or via email.
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