France vs. Spain: Head-to-head record and past meetings ahead of World Cup 2026 semi-final

Favourites France are set to clash European champions Spain in a blockbuster World Cup 2026 semi-final on Tuesday at Arlington's AT&T Stadium.

Didier Deschamps's Bleus booked their place in the last four by beating Morocco 2-0 last Thursday, thanks to goals from Kylian Mbappe and Ousmane Dembele.

As for Luis de la Fuente's Roja, they overcame Belgium in a narrow 2-1 victory, courtesy of an 88th-minute winner from substitute Mikel Merino.

Here, Sports Mole takes an in-depth look at the head-to-head record and previous meetings between France and Spain ahead of their World Cup semi-final.

Head-to-head record

Previous meetings: 38

France wins: 13

Draws: 7

Spain wins: 18

Two of European football's giants, France and Spain, have locked horns on 38 separate occasions over the years, and it is La Roja that lead the head-to-head record with 18 wins compared to Les Bleus' 13, while the sides have played out seven draws.

The first encounter between the nations took place back in April 1922, when Spain thrashed France 4-0 during a friendly in Bordeaux, thanks to a brace apiece from Paulino Alcantara and Manuel Lopez 'Travieso'.

That inaugural defeat marked the first of four in a row for France, who only managed to avoid losing one of their opening eight contests against Spain, beating La Roja 1-0 in April 1933.

June 1984 marked the most high-profile meeting in this fixture - and the very first competitive showdown - when France ran out 2-0 winners in the European Championship final, courtesy of second-half efforts from Michel Platini and Bruno Bellone.

Triumphing at the Parc des Princes that day saw Les Bleus secure their first ever major trophy, a feat made all the more special given they were the competition's hosts.

Since then, France have regularly come up against Spain in the knockout stages of international tournaments, emerging victorious in the round of 16 at World Cup 2006, for example.

However, La Roja have won three of the last four meetings between the nations, including a 2-1 comeback in the semi-finals of Euro 2024, when Lamine Yamal and Dani Olmo overcame an early opener from Randal Kolo Muani.

Their most recent clash saw Spain win a dramatic nine-goal thriller 5-4 during June 2025's Nations League semi-final, surviving a second-half scare having established a 5-1 lead with Yamal's 67th-minute effort.