Spain (1st, 4pts) vs Uruguay (2nd, 2pts)
Competition/Round: 2026 World Cup, Group H, Round 3
Spain Outs & Doubts: None
Uruguay Outs & Doubts: Ronald Araujo, Giorgian De Arrascaeta (out)
Date/Time: Friday, June 26, 2026, 8pm ET, 5pm PT (USA), 2am CET (Barcelona, Saturday), 1am BST/WAT (UK & Nigeria, Saturday), 5.30am IST (India, Saturday)
Venue: Estadio Akron, Guadalajara, Mexico
Referee: Ismail Elfath (USA)
How to watch on TV: FOX (USA), ITV 1 (UK), United8 Sports 1 (India), SuperSport (Nigeria), TVE La 1 (Spain), others
How to watch online: FuboTV
(USA), ITVX (UK), ZEE5 (India), DAZN (Spain), others
Following a strong win over Saudi Arabia in their second group stage match last weekend, La Roja return to action for their third and final Group H clash as Spain face South American powerhouses Uruguay on Friday night in Guadalajara.
This is one of the most anticipated games of the group stage as Lamine Yamal and Co. take on legendary coach Marcelo Bielsa and Real Madrid’s Federico Valverde, who are the leaders of the Celeste as they look for a spot in the Round of 32. There sadly won’t be a Barcelona representative for Uruguay as Ronald Araujo has been ruled out with a hamstring injury.
Uruguay were held to a draw in their first two games against Saudi Arabia and Cape Verde, putting huge pressure on the Celeste to get a win in this one. If there is a winner in the other game between the two group underdogs Uruguay can only qualify with a win, while a draw may also be enough to secure second place as long as the other game necessarily ends all square.
Spain have a more comfortable path to the knockout rounds as four points will be enough to secure at least third place, and a draw will likely be good enough to secure top spot. They can also finish second with a loss as long as Cape Verde don’t beat Saudi Arabia, so La Roja will advance to the knockouts regardless of what happens on Friday.
But Luis de la Fuente and his troops want to build momentum after the excellent performance against the Saudis, and a quality win against Uruguay would be a great morale boost to move forward in the tournament. Lamine Yamal is expected to start again and play at least an hour to continue building his fitness, but Spain will be hoping to wrap up the win early to give the teenage superstar a chance to come off as early as possible.
Uruguay need a win and Bielsa knows how to set up his teams to play with remarkable intensity and pressure, so Spain must be ready to play their best stuff and match Uruguay’s urgency to finish the group stage on a high.
Let’s dance.
(Be careful, Lamine.)
POSSIBLE LINEUPS
Spain (4-2-3-1): Simón; Porro, Cubarsí, Laporte, Cucurella; Rodri, Pedri; Yamal, Olmo, Baena; Oyarzabal
Uruguay (4-2-3-1): Muslera; Varela, Cáceres, Olivera, Sanabria; Bentancur, Ugarte; Canobbio, Valverde, Araujo; Viñas
PREDICTION
Uruguay know that playing for a draw is way too risky, so they will press and try to force Spain into mistakes. I expect an open game with good chances for both sides, and for La Roja to win a very entertaining clash in Guadalajara: 3-1 Spain.
