Spain could make World Cup history: The first to win men's and women's trophies back-to-back

Spain could make World Cup history: The first to win men's and women's trophies back-to-back July 17, 20264:17 PM ET From By  Madeline Fox Pedro Porro #12 of Spain celebrates after the 2-0 victory during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Semi Final match between France and Spain at Dallas Stadium on July 14, 2026 in Arlington, Texas. Florencia Tan Jun/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Florencia Tan Jun/Getty Images If the Spanish Men's National Team pulls off a World Cup victory on Sunday, the Spanish football federation would make history as the first to bring home successive World Cup championships on the men's and women's side in the history of the tournament. The women's team won the 2023 World Cup and will enter next year's tournament in Brazil as defending champions. While the men's team has been a perennial contender, appearing in 17 out of 23 World Cup tournaments, they last won the Trophy back in 2010. The FIFA Women's World Cup has had a much shorter history than its male counterpart; having started in 1991 compared to 1930 for the men. During that time, it has only had five different champions: the United States, Germany, Norway, Japan and Spain. Sponsor Message Only two of those teams, Germany and Spain, have also won the men's World Cup. The Spanish System Spain has a robust men's soccer league system, led by the Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, more commonly known as La Liga. Its teams are consistently among the top-ranked in Europe. Real Madrid, based in the capitol, is one of the world's most successful soccer clubs. FC Barcelona is the third-most valuable soccer club in the world, and Argentina's Lionel Messi broke Brazilian legend Pelé's record for most goals scored for a single club for the Catalonian team. Trips to Barcelona's stadium, Camp Nou, have reached near-pilgrimage status for diehard soccer fans. Spain's players and officials celebrate with the trophy after winning the Australia and New Zealand 2023 Women's World Cup fi...