# Spain defeats Belgium, reaches World Cup semifinals on Merino goal

Spain defeated Belgium in a World Cup match, with Mikel Merino scoring the decisive goal to secure a semifinal spot. The victory advances Spain in the tournament, eliminating Belgium.

**Importance:** 2/5

## Sources

### World
- [Al Jazeera](https://www.aljazeera.com/video/2026/7/11/video-world-cup-2026-highlights?traffic_source=rss) — Sat, 11 Jul 2026 08:30:41 +0000
- [Al Jazeera](https://www.aljazeera.com/sports/2026/7/13/are-messi-mbappe-yamal-and-kane-part-of-the-best-world-cup-semifinal-yet?traffic_source=rss) — Mon, 13 Jul 2026 04:56:18 +0000
- [Al Jazeera](https://www.aljazeera.com/video/2026/7/13/video-world-cup-2026-highlights?traffic_source=rss) — Mon, 13 Jul 2026 08:15:41 +0000
- [Al Jazeera](https://www.aljazeera.com/sports/2026/7/13/france-spain-world-cup-semifinal-mbappe-yamal-predictions-kickoff?traffic_source=rss) — Mon, 13 Jul 2026 09:52:37 +0000
- [Al Jazeera](https://www.aljazeera.com/sports/2026/7/13/fifa-world-cup-key-players-to-watch-as-france-take-on-spain-in-2026-semifinal?traffic_source=rss) — Mon, 13 Jul 2026 14:50:01 +0000
- [Al Jazeera](https://www.aljazeera.com/sports/2026/7/14/birthday-present-for-spains-yamal-world-cup-semifinal-win-over-france?traffic_source=rss) — Tue, 14 Jul 2026 04:24:20 +0000
- [Al Jazeera](https://www.aljazeera.com/sports/2026/7/14/kylian-is-fine-france-ready-full-strength-for-spain-world-cup-semifinal?traffic_source=rss) — Tue, 14 Jul 2026 03:52:50 +0000
- [Al Jazeera](https://www.aljazeera.com/sports/2026/7/14/world-cup-semifinals-barcelona-real-madrid-la-liga-yamal-mbappe-bellingham?traffic_source=rss) — Tue, 14 Jul 2026 12:11:55 +0000
- [Al Jazeera](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/7/15/spain-france-world-cup-semifinal-luis-de-la-fuente-2010-title?traffic_source=rss) — Wed, 15 Jul 2026 07:01:10 +0000
- [The Guardian World](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/jul/15/france-world-cup-semi-final-media-reactions-spain) — Wed, 15 Jul 2026 11:28:20 GMT

### Sports
- [Fox News Sports](https://www.foxnews.com/sports/could-spains-lamine-yamal-benched-vs-france-semis) — Fri, 10 Jul 2026 20:09:49 -0400
- [BBC Sport](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cgjxjqpgq4xo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss) — Wed, 15 Jul 2026 09:44:49 GMT