- 1 England vs Spain: only one goal conceded in eight World Cup games for the world champions, the stat that sums up the showdown
- 2 England: 20 goals scored at the World Cup, 12 conceded, and a defence that fell apart in the consolation final
- 3 Spain: world champions with a near-impenetrable defence
- 4 Football Prediction England vs Spain
- 5 First, a word on our free predictions
- 6 No commitment from us
- 7 Information changes
- 8 Your responsibility
- 9 Responsible gambling first
- 10 Legal age
- 11 About the images…
England vs Spain: only one goal conceded in eight World Cup games for the world champions, the stat that sums up the showdown 
Spain conceded just one goal across their 2026 World Cup run, over eight matches. That lone strike came in the quarter-final against Belgium.
The world champions head to Wembley on Saturday 26 September, kick-off at 20:45 Paris time, for the opening round of Group A3 in the Nations League.
The stadium is sold out. It is England’s first outing since finishing third at the World Cup, their best showing in the competition since the 1966 title.
Group A3 brings together Spain, Croatia, England and the Czech Republic. The top two go through to the quarter-finals, while the bottom side drops straight into League B.
Thomas Tuchel has named 27 players for this international window, with Cole Palmer, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Jarrad Branthwaite, Lewis Hall, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Alex Scott and Rio Ngumoha all back in the mix.
The two sides were both in action this summer, but never against each other: Spain knocked out France in the semi-finals, while Argentina ended England’s run. Wembley finally gives us the meeting the World Cup draw denied.
England are back in League A after winning promotion in the previous edition, having come up from the lower tier. They sit 11th in the overall UEFA rankings, with Spain second.
England: 20 goals scored at the World Cup, 12 conceded, and a defence that fell apart in the consolation final 
England scored 20 goals in eight World Cup matches and conceded 12. That tells the story: top-level attacking threat, but a back line that was far too easy to get at.
The group stage set the tone early with a 4-2 win over Croatia, sealed by a Harry Kane double, a Jude Bellingham goal and another from Marcus Rashford.
The knockout run leaned heavily on two men. Kane struck twice against DR Congo in the last 16, while Bellingham did the same against Mexico at the Azteca and then against Norway in the quarter-finals, after extra time.
That quarter-final against Norway remains England’s best display of resilience in the summer. Trailing from the 36th minute, they turned the game around deep into extra-time stoppage time.
The end of the tournament was less convincing. Beaten 2-1 by Argentina in the semi-finals after taking the lead, England then won the third-place game 6-4 against France thanks to a Bukayo Saka hat-trick and a first half that had them 4-0 up.
That match also exposed the weakness: four second-half goals conceded against the French. It is exactly the sort of lapse Spain tend not to forgive.
England’s schedule is packed in this window. After Spain, Tuchel takes his squad to Prague on 29 September, then to Rijeka on 3 October before hosting the Czech Republic at Wembley on 6 October.
Four matches in 11 days against the other three teams in the group: managing the legs will matter just as much as the result on Saturday. That explains the size of the squad, stretched to 27 players.
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Spain: world champions with a near-impenetrable defence 
Spain won their second world title on 19 July, 16 years after the first. The final against Argentina ended 1-0 after extra time, with Ferran Torres scoring in the 105th minute.
The standout number from their campaign is at the back. Just one goal conceded in eight matches, against Belgium in the quarter-finals, and seven clean sheets.
The group stage began with a frustrating 0-0 draw against Cape Verde. Luis de la Fuente’s side then followed it with a 4-0 win over Saudi Arabia, featuring a Mikel Oyarzabal brace and the first World Cup goal of Lamine Yamal.
The pattern repeated in the knockout rounds: 3-0 against Austria, 1-0 against Portugal thanks to a stoppage-time strike from Mikel Merino, then 2-1 against Belgium with Merino again on target in the 88th minute.
The semi-final against France confirmed the method. Two goals from Oyarzabal and Pedro Porro, none conceded, and a French side known for its attacking output kept at arm’s length for 90 minutes.
In the final, Argentina did not manage a single shot on target in normal time, and Enzo Fernandez’s red card for a challenge on Pau Cubarsi ended it there and then. A side capable of that is not coming to Wembley to sit back.
Spain arrive at this match with a status they had not held since 2010. They are world champions, and every opponent now has to build its plan around that fact.
Their attacking options widened during the tournament too. Oyarzabal, Merino, Porro, Lamine Yamal and Ferran Torres all scored at the World Cup, which makes life awkward for any defence trying to prepare.
Probable England lineup: Not available at time of publication.
Probable Spain lineup: Not available at time of publication.
Football Prediction England vs Spain
Our prediction: Spain to win
One goal conceded in eight World Cup matches against 12 for tonight’s opponents: the defensive gap between these two sides is the clearest on the opening day of League A. That is the foundation for the call.
Spain beat Portugal, Belgium, France and Argentina in the knockout stage, four sides of the same class as England. They never conceded more than once during that run.
The market has Spain as favourites at around 2.40, with the total set at 2.5. For a world champion that has been winning tight games for three months, that price looks too kind: back Spain to win.
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