Spain face Saudi Arabia in Group H do-or-die World Cup clash

Spain return to Atlanta on Sunday (12:00 local time, 16:00 GMT) hoping to put their shock goalless draw against debutants Cape Verde behind them and produce a much-improved performance against Saudi Arabia in their Group H match at the FIFA World Cup 2026.

Once among the tournament favourites, Spain are no longer the top choice of bookmakers to lift the trophy in North America, as questions arise over a worrying lack of sharpness in attack. The reigning European champions, who boast one of the world's most exciting players in Lamine Yamal, now face a solid Saudi Arabian side that held Uruguay to a 1-1 draw in their opening match.

Will Yamal start?

After a poor attacking display against Cape Verde, where they failed to score despite 27 shots, Spain desperately need better finishing. Winger Yamal regularly scores or assists, but the 18-year-old's minutes at the World Cup have been limited by a hamstring injury.

Yamal was named on the bench and only came on in the 71st minute. Many expected him to return to the starting lineup as Spain needed a reset, but that will not happen yet.

“I'm fine, I feel good, but it's very early, unnecessary; I'm still getting used to it – it's not the right time to play a full match – but I can play as many minutes as the coach decides,” Yamal told Spanish public broadcaster TVE on Friday. “I want to be on the pitch; in the end, even knowing I can't play 90 minutes, you always want to go out and help the team.”

Saudi Arabia brimming with confidence

While Spain's confidence may be low after their first match, the atmosphere in the Saudi camp is excellent. The 1-1 draw against former world champions Uruguay was a “mental boost” for the team, according to coach Georgios Donis, who only took over two months before the World Cup.

Despite limited time with the squad, Donis's Saudi Arabia came away with a point, keeping their hopes of reaching the knockout stage alive. After the surprise result against Cape Verde, Spain will not take Saudi Arabia lightly – a team that caused a major upset in the first round of the 2022 World Cup by beating eventual champions Argentina.

Match prediction

Statistics provider Opta's supercomputer gives Spain an 86.7 percent chance of winning, while Saudi Arabia have only a 4.3 percent chance of victory and a 9 percent chance of a draw. Spain were initially the top contender for the World Cup title, but after their goalless draw, they dropped to fourth in Opta's prediction list, with France now the most favoured team (15.43 percent). Spain now have a 12.04 percent chance of winning the tournament.

Broadcast information

• Spain: LA1, PLAY, DAZN Mundial (18:00 CEST)
• Saudi Arabia: beIN SPORTS MAX 5, beIN SPORTS 4K HDR, beIN SPORTS MAX 1, TOD, beIN SPORTS MAX 3, beIN CONNECT (19:00 AST)
• UK: BBC One, BBC iPlayer, ITVX (17:00 BST)
• USA: Universo, FOX, FOX One, Telemundo App, Telemundo Network, Peacock (12:00 EDT)

Group format

Spain, Saudi Arabia, Uruguay and Cape Verde are all in Group H. All four teams have one point, with Uruguay leading on fair play points. Saudi Arabia are second, Spain third and Cape Verde bottom. All have an equal chance of reaching the knockout stages. The top two teams in each of the 12 groups, along with the eight best third-placed teams, advance to the round of 32 – a format being used for the first time at a World Cup.

Recent form

(Last five matches, most recent first)

Spain: D - W - D - D - W
Saudi Arabia: D - D - W - L - L

Spain drew 0-0 with Cape Verde at the World Cup, beat Peru 3-1, and drew 1-1 with Iraq in friendlies in June. They also drew 0-0 with Egypt and beat Serbia 3-0 in March. Saudi Arabia drew 1-1 with Uruguay, drew 0-0 with Senegal, beat Puerto Rico 3-0 in June, lost 2-1 to Ecuador in May and lost 2-1 to Serbia in March.

Head-to-head record

The two teams have met three times, with Spain winning all three. The most recent meeting was in September 2012, when Spain won 5-0. Sunday's match will be their second World Cup meeting; the first was in 2006, when Spain won 1-0 in the group stage.

Predicted lineups

Spain (4-3-3): Simon; Llorente, Cubarsi, Laporte, Cucurella; Ruiz, Rodri, Pedri; Ferran, Olmo, Gavi

Saudi Arabia (4-4-2): Al Owais; Abdulhamid, Al Amri, Al Tambakti, Al-Harbi; Al Shamat, Kanno, Akhaibari, Al-Dawsari; Al-Buraikan, Al-Juwayr