Spain wins second FIFA World Cup to join football's most successful nations

Main Points

• Spain wins a second FIFA World Cup to join football's elite nations
• Brazil remains the only five-time men's World Cup champion
• Only eight countries have won the FIFA Men's World Cup since 1930

Spain claimed its second FIFA World Cup title after defeating Argentina in the 2026 final, moving level with France and Uruguay in the list of the tournament's most successful nations.

The victory adds to Spain's first World Cup triumph in South Africa in 2010, when Andrés Iniesta's extra-time goal secured a 1-0 victory over the Netherlands. Sixteen years later, a new generation led Spain back to the summit of world football, making the country only the sixth nation to win multiple men's World Cup titles.

Brazil remains the most successful nation in FIFA World Cup history with five titles, won in 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994 and 2002. Germany and Italy follow with four titles each, while Argentina now has three after lifting the trophy in 1978, 1986 and 2022.

Spain's latest success means only eight countries have won the FIFA Men's World Cup since the tournament began in Uruguay in 1930. France and Uruguay each have two titles, while England remains on one after its lone triumph on home soil in 1966.

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The 2026 title also reinforces Europe's recent dominance of the competition. Since 2006, European teams have won five of the last six World Cups, with Italy (2006), Spain (2010), Germany (2014), France (2018) and now Spain (2026). Argentina's victory in Qatar in 2022 is the only interruption to that run.

Spain's victory caps a remarkable period for the country's national teams. The men's side added the 2026 World Cup to its UEFA Euro 2024 title, while the women's team remains the reigning FIFA Women's World Cup champion after winning the 2023 tournament in Australia and New Zealand.

With two World Cup trophies, Spain now shares fifth place on the all-time winners' list alongside France and Uruguay, while Brazil's record of five titles remains the benchmark every football nation continues to chase.