Spain's teenage winger Lamine Yamal scored in the 10th minute as Spain beat Saudi Arabia 1-0 at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Sunday 21 June. The result took Spain, the reigning European champions, to four points in Group H and left Saudi Arabia on one. 1
Spain had opened with a goalless draw against debutants Cape Verde , a dropped point that under the old 32-team format would have threatened their place in the last 16. It did not here. Spain now need only a draw against Uruguay in the final round to reach the round of 32, the first knockout stage, where 32 sides remain.
The expanded format has compressed the maths that decides who goes through. With 12 groups of four feeding both the top two and the eight best third-placed sides into the knockouts, a team that takes four points from two games is almost always safe. The arithmetic that older 36-match group stages left unresolved until the final whistle is now settled a round early: Spain can plan for a knockout opponent before they have formally qualified, and Saudi Arabia must beat Uruguay simply to keep the third-place route open.
