Spain's Ferran Torres scored the goal that gave his country the 2026 FIFA World Cup title Sunday.
La Roja dominated Argentina 1-0 in the final match of the expanded tournament that saw 48 teams play 104 games across Mexico, Canada and the United States.
Hundreds of thousands of people attended the games at Dallas Stadium and millions visited North Texas for the World Cup, bringing with them traditions, chants and unparalleled energy.
The tournament kicked off June 11 when Mexico defeated South Africa 2-0 at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City and arrived in North Texas on June 14, with Japan and the Netherlands tying 2-2 in Arlington.
Arlington hosted nine games including an expectation-defying semifinal and some of the best players in the game today.
Here’s a look at how it went.
Sold-out matches at Dallas Stadium
Across the entire tournament, more than 6.6 million people attended matches, according to FIFA. That amounts for 99.7% of all seats across all stadiums being occupied for group stage matches.
Specifically in Dallas, several matches were played in front of a full house.
While AT&T Stadium boasts around 80,000 spots for fans during Cowboys games, the World Cup limited the number of tickets to 70,649.
FIFA said three matches were sold out: Argentina vs. Austria on June 22, Jordan vs. Argentina on June 27 and the Round of 16 match between Portugal and Spain on July 6.
Matches weren’t the only place fans went.
The free FIFA Fan Festival at Fair Park in Dallas hosted up to 35,000 fans each day, and watch parties at Sundance Square in Fort Worth drew thousands to watch the matches on the big screen.
With so many people heading to Arlington, many expressed concerns that the region’s limited public transportation would be insufficient and cause confusion — especially among international visitors.
Traffic was definitely impacted, with many streets and the highways around the stadium experiencing unusual congestion and at times standstill traffic.
But while some of international fans said they didn’t consider the options for getting around North Texas to be adequate, those worries were largely avoided.
And for many fans, nothing was going to stop them from making it to matches — especially with some of the names on the rosters.
A star-studded tournament in Arlington
Living soccer legends took the pitch in Arlington for this year’s World Cup, the last for several of them.
Lionel Messi’s first appearance in Arlington saw him set a new record for World Cup goals scored in a career, then break his own new record in the same match. He scored twice in that game with Austria.
While Messi isn’t retiring from the sport, this is expected to be his last bid for the FIFA World Cup Trophy.
Messi’s record heading into the final sits at 21 goals scored. Miroslav Klose, the German center-forward who made 24 World Cup appearances, held the record previously with 16 career goals scored in the largest sporting tournament on the planet.
Another living legend’s World Cup career concluded on the pitch in Arlington.
Cristiano Ronaldo, the Portuguese footballer who like Messi has become a household name, confirmed this was his last World Cup.
He made 27 appearances across six World Cups, and the 1-0 defeat to Spain left fans in tears. Many called him an inspiration, a role model for the younger generation of stars and praised him for the attention and appreciation he showed to his fans.
Egypt’s Mohamed Salah, a forward who captained the team, and Luka Modric, a midfielder with the Croatia national team and AC Milan, also played in Arlington.
Three footballers marked as promising rising stars showed up in North Texas matches, too.
Spain’s 19-year-old forward Lamine Yamal, who was 18 when the World Cup started, has been hailed as one of the most promising young players in the sport today.
Norway’s Erling Haaland, 25, made his World Cup debut with seven goals across five matches, captivating fans and soccer strangers alike on social media with clips of his stunning plays.
For France, 27-year-old Kylian Mbappe is seen as a force to be reckoned with. This was his third World Cup, having also been in France’s lineup in 2018 and 2022. The French star scored 10 goals in this tournament to win the Golden Boot.
These players met each other on the pitch in several cities throughout the tournament, including in the last game in Arlington.
A massive upset: Spain and France in the semifinal
From the start, France was seen by many as the favorite to take home the FIFA World Cup trophy.
But when Mbappe, Yamal and the rest of the French and Spanish teams ended their semifinal round, Spain had changed the narrative.
Fans of France started the match with boisterous energy while chants and cheers from Spain’s supporters seemed less optimistic. That changed after Spain broke through with a goal from striker Mikel Oyarzabal in the 22nd minute.
The shift felt magnetic — France fans screaming into bullhorns and banging on drums lost the wind in their sails while Spain’s fans began blowing into trumpets, pounding on drums, singing and chanting “Sí se puede.”
The second goal of the game, scored for Spain by defender Pedro Porro in the 58th minute, sent fans into a frenzy. In several sections, stadium staff had trouble keeping them out of walkways as they jumped around, threw their arms over each others’ shoulders, hugged and sang.
No matter the outcome, though, many fans said the chance to see Yamal and Mbappe on the pitch together was a dream.
Local leaders hoped the World Cup, especially with all those big names coming to the city, would also bring big spending.
While numbers are still being crunched, an early look suggests their hopes came true.
Visitors spent hundreds of millions
The North Texas FIFA World Cup Organizing Committee expected a region-wide economic impact of around $6 billion as a result of the tournament and all the events surrounding it.
Early numbers show that in Arlington alone, fans brought anywhere from $18 million to $24 million on match days alone, according to Arlington Convention and Visitors Bureau CEO Brent DeRaad.
Hotel costs likely contributed to that.
DeRaad said room rates in June 2026 were up 47% over June 2025. Occupancy at those hotels was slightly down while still staying over 70%, but the increase in cost meant an increase in revenue.
While no solid numbers were yet available for July, DeRaad said it was starting off strong and he was hoping the momentum would continue through the semifinal match.
Fans left out for travel restrictions
While turnout broke records, legends captivated fans and some hearts were broken while other dreams had a chance to live on, some fans couldn’t be there.
US limitations on travel from seven countries with representation in the FIFA World Cup meant fans couldn’t even get permission to enter the country.
Haiti and Iran faced full entry bans while Ivory Coast and Senegal had partial restrictions, according to the Department of State. Fans from Algeria and Cape Verde also faced restrictions, with the U.S. requiring a $15,000 bond for citizens of those nations to enter the country.
Ivory Coast and Egypt both found themselves in knockout rounds, marking the first time Ivory Coast made it that far.
The country’s official fan group for the national soccer team, the National Committee for the Support of the Elephants, said it didn’t even bother trying to get permission to go to the U.S. for Ivory Coast matches, according to BBC.
“It’s a form of segregation that doesn’t dare speak its name, but the proof is there,” the association's president, Julien Kouadio, told BBC. “No European country has faced this kind of restriction. Why Africa?”
Gautier Bah, one of the few Ivory Coast fans at the game, said he was proud of what his home country accomplished.
“That step is really, really, really big for us,” Bah said. “They are so happy to be here and the first thing we were looking for is to show our country, Ivory Coast, to the world.”
Bah, who is from Ivory Coast and has lived in Dallas since 2019, said he wished more fans were able to join him in the stands, cheering on their team.
State Department officials told KERA News ahead of the World Cup that it expected unprecedented turnout of international fans but could not provide estimates or projections on the impacts those Trump administration policies would have.
James Hartley reports on Arlington for KERA News. Got a tip? Email James Hartley at jhartley@kera.org.
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