​Spain advanced past Belgium with a 2-1 victory in a World Cup quarterfinal, but their remarkable defensive run finally reached its end at the hands of the determined Belgian side. Charles De Ketelaere opened the scoring for Belgium in the 41st minute, breaking Spain’s long-standing World Cup shutout streak at 650 minutes, the longest in World Cup history.
The streak began as a continuation of Spain’s 2022 World Cup campaign and carried into the 2026 tournament, including a goalless draw against Cape Verde to start the group stage and extending through six straight World Cup clean sheets. De Ketelaere, one of the tournament’s breakout stars, ended the run with his goal. For Spain, Unai Simón started and finished as the goalkeeper throughout this period, marking a period of exceptional resilience for the national team.
The 650-minute shutout set a new FIFA World Cup record, surpassing the previous benchmark of 517 consecutive scoreless minutes set by Italy’s Walter Zenga during the 1990 World Cup.