Sánchez to attend Spain-Argentina World Cup final in New York without his wife

Spain's prime minister confirmed on Friday that he will travel to New York's MetLife Stadium to watch the World Cup final between Spain and Argentina, according to sources in Moncloa. Sánchez will take a seat in the VIP box alongside the King and Queen, after his attendance had been in doubt in recent days because of other engagements scheduled for the start of next week. The prime minister will not be travelling with his wife, Begoña Gómez, those same sources said. Staff at Moncloa had been working on the trip since the previous Thursday, with the added complication that on Monday he is due to make an official visit to Algiers, his first trip to the North African country since 2020. In the end, the prime minister's team managed to fit in both commitments: as soon as the match is over, Sánchez will fly straight to Algeria to carry out his institutional agenda there on Monday. This is not the first time his presence at a Spain game has been in doubt during the final stages of the tournament. The prime minister also did not travel to the semi final against France, played on Tuesday in Arlington because of the Almería wildfire; that day he was in Paris, where he took part in Bastille Day events and met the mayor of the French capital.

Spain's road to the final

Luis de la Fuente's side reach the final after a tournament that has been virtually free of scares. Having come through the group stage, Spain began the knock-out rounds with a 3-0 win over Austria, featuring a brace from Mikel Oyarzabal, a result that returned them to the last 16 for the first time since their 2010 triumph. Portugal awaited in the last 16, in one of the most closely followed ties of the tournament. The match was decided by the narrowest of margins, 1-0, with a goal from Mikel Merino that also sealed Cristiano Ronaldo's elimination in what was his last World Cup. In the quarter finals, Belgium finally breached Unai Simón's unbeaten goal with a strike from Charles De Ketelaere, but Spain hit back through Fabián Ruiz and, once again, Merino to wrap up a 2-1 victory. The semi final against France, whom much of the specialist press had installed as firm favourites for the title, ended in a comfortable 2-0 win. Oyarzabal opened the scoring from the penalty spot after a foul on Lamine Yamal, and Pedro Porro put the game beyond reach in the second half. That result sends Spain into their second World Cup final, sixteen years after lifting their only title in South Africa.

A final with historic significance

Facing them will be Argentina, the reigning world champions and the team that knocked England out in a semi final settled in stoppage time thanks to a goal from Lautaro Martínez, after a fightback led by Lionel Messi. The match, scheduled for 21:00 this Sunday, will be the first World Cup final between two Spanish-speaking national teams since 1930.