🗞️ Spain defies history against Belgium, Friday's front pages | OneFootball

The 2026 World Cup is entering its hottest stage, and the sports front pages this Friday, July 10, reflect the enormous excitement surrounding the tournament.

With France already through to the semifinals after beating Morocco 2-0, all eyes are now on the decisive quarterfinal clash between Spain and Belgium.

Newsstands across Europe and the Americas are buzzing over a matchup that promises to be historic.

The optimism of the Spanish press

MARCA leads exclusively with Dani Olmo under the emphatic headline: "We are title contenders," highlighting that Luis de la Fuente’s side is aiming to reach the World Cup semifinals for only the second time in its history.

Meanwhile, AS colors its front page with the national flag and the slogan "Spain’s time," calling for the same gala lineup against the Belgian "wall."

From Barcelona, Sport is blunt with "Today is your day," focusing on Lamine Yamal’s fearlessness as the key to breaking the quarterfinal barrier.

France celebrates and the U.S. analyzes

On the other side of the Pyrenees, L'Équipe celebrates Les Bleus’ success across its entire front page with the emphatic "À cœur joie" (With heartfelt joy), marking a third straight semifinal for the side led by a superb Kylian Mbappé.

In the United States, The Washington Post praises the Real Madrid star’s leadership with the headline "Forging ahead" and analyzes the Norwegian fans’ epic resilience throughout the tournament.

Olé’s full-blown 'jinx'

The day’s most striking and discordant note comes from South America. Argentine newspaper Olé, true to its provocative style, is tempting fate with a headline many are already calling a historic 'jinx': "They are already champions."

After France’s passage to the next round, the paper is taking the French title for granted even before the semifinals are played, a bold move that has set social media ablaze and adds even more spice to the closing stretch of the most important tournament on the planet.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.

📸 FREDERIC J. BROWN - AFP or licensors