The 2026 World Cup quarterfinals continue at Los Angeles Stadium, where Spain and Belgium clash in a crucial match as both look to book their place among the tournament’s final four teams.
Spain stumbled into the tournament with a scoreless draw against Cape Verde, but have looked sharper with every match since, cruising to the top of Group H before thrashing Austria 3-0 in the Round of 32 and edging out Portugal 1-0 in the Round of 16 on a late Mikel Merino strike.
Much of the attention heading into Friday’s match falls on Lamine Yamal. The young forward has managed just a single goal through five appearances this tournament and is expected to start today alongside Mikel Oyarzabal, who is leading the squad with four goals.
Belgium, meanwhile, needed a dramatic turnaround to reach this stage, coming from behind to beat Senegal in extra time after topping Group G, before putting together their most complete performance of the tournament in a 4-1 rout of the USMNT to reach the quarterfinals.
Charles De Ketelaere #17 of Belgium celebrates a goal vs the USMNT. (Getty Images)
Spain’s projected lineup
Luis de la Fuente is expected to make no changes to the group that eliminated Portugal, keeping faith in the same attacking trio and midfield pairing that has carried Spain this far.
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Spain’s projected starting XI: Unai Simon; Pedro Porro, Pau Cubarsi, Aymeric Laporte, Marc Cucurella; Rodri, Pedri; Lamine Yamal, Dani Olmo, Alex Baena; Mikel Oyarzabal.
Belgium’s projected lineup
Rudi Garcia is likely to lean once again on Belgium’s veteran core, with Kevin De Bruyne pulling the strings in midfield behind a front line built for pace and directness.
Belgium’s projected starting XI: Thibaut Courtois; Timothy Castagne, Brandon Mechele, Nathan Ngoy, Maxim De Cuyper; Youri Tielemans, Kevin De Bruyne, Hans Vanaken; Charles De Ketelaere, Jeremy Doku, Leandro Trossard.
