England advanced to the semifinals after Jude Bellingham netted twice to inspire his team past Erling Haaland's Norway in the quarterfinals over the weekend. Both Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham have scored six goals in the competition for England. Argentina also moved through to the last four after striker Julián Álvarez scored in extra time to help the team through to the semifinal at the expense of Switzerland, with a little help from a controversial VAR call. The semifinals now feature the four highest-ranked teams in the competition.
England is looking for its first World Cup title since 1966 and was last in a World Cup semifinal in 2018, when it lost to Croatia. The team has relied on Kane and Bellingham to produce match-winning moments despite looking disjointed and vulnerable at the back. Argentina is the defending champion and has scored the most goals out of anyone in the competition with 17. Many members of the current squad won the title back in 2022. France is considered by many to be the tournament favorite, with Kylian Mbappé proving highly effective with his pace and directness. Legendary manager Didier Deschamps is leaving his role after this tournament. Spain has conceded just one goal the entire tournament and beat France in the semifinals of Euro 2024 and in the Nations League last year.