Spain Reach FIFA World Cup Last 16 After Dominant Win Over Austria

Mikel Oyarzabal scored a brace as Spain defeated Austria 3-0 at Los Angeles Stadium in Inglewood to book their place in the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 16.

Spain, considered one of the tournament favorites, continued their strong defensive run as they kept another clean sheet. Luis de la Fuente’s side will now face either Portugal for a place in the quarterfinals.

After a controlled start, Spain opened the scoring in the 36th minute when Oyarzabal turned in Marc Cucurella’s low cross from the left. The goal was his third of the tournament.

Pedro Porro doubled the lead in the 66th minute after Alex Baena picked him out with a cross at the back post. Porro made no mistake with his header and scored his first goal for Spain.

Oyarzabal completed the win in the 89th minute, once again linking up with Cucurella before slotting the ball into the bottom-right corner.

Spain dominated the match with 64.5% possession and produced 10 shots on target from 23 attempts. Austria struggled to create clear chances and failed to register a single shot on target from five attempts.’

Austria’s best opportunity of the second half came when Sasa Kalajdzic met a cross in the box, but his header landed on top of the goal.

The win will be a major boost for Spain after they started the tournament with a goalless draw against Cape Verde, which had raised questions over their form.

Spain will also take confidence from the performance of Lamine Yamal, with the 18-year-old looking sharp after recovering from the hamstring injury that had troubled him earlier in the tournament.