​France suffered a major blow in the first half of its World Cup semifinal against Spain, as key defender William Saliba had to leave the match with an injury.Saliba had the ball near midfield and went down to ground without any contact, apparently suffering from a muscle injury. The Arsenal defender limped off the pitch and was replaced by Maxence Lacroix in the 30th minute.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe injury took place with France already down 1-0 after Mikel Oyarzabal converted from the penalty spot to give Spain a 22nd-minute advantage.Last month, Saliba admitted he has been playing through pain at the World Cup after a long club season.”I’ve had some minor niggles for several months,” Saliba said. “I’ve been gritting my teeth because there was the Champions League and the Premier League. But the coaching staff are handling it very well.”The World Cup comes round only once every four years, so you’ve got to grit your teeth. I’m not at 100%, but there are plenty of players who aren’t at 100% either — you can’t make excuses.”AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe 2026 World Cup is the largest ever, and USA TODAY is going all in with reporters on the ground in all 16 host cities across three countries to cover 48 teams vying for the trophy. Get our World Cup: Extra Time newsletter in your inbox every morning and join our WhatsApp channel to get the latest updates right in your texts.All games are being broadcast in the United States on Fox and FS1. Matches will also be broadcast in Spanish throughout the entirety of the World Cup on Telemundo and streaming on Peacock . Meet Team USA 2026: Get to know the athletes behind the games The World Cup becomes a single-elimination tournament once the knockout stage begins. The 32 remaining teams have been placed into a bracket, and the field will halve itself during each ensuing round of the tournament until a winner is crowned.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe lone exception is that the two semifinal losers will play in a third-place game ahead of the World Cup final.July 4: France def Paraguay – Lincoln Financial Field, PhiladelphiaJuly 6: Spain def Portugal – ArlingtonJuly 6: Belgium def USA – SeattleJuly 9: France def Morocco – FoxboroughJuly 10: Spain def Belgium – InglewoodJuly 11: England def England – MiamiJuly 11: Argentina def Switzerland – Kansas CityJuly 14: France vs. Spain  – ArlingtonJuly 15: England vs. Argentina – AtlantaJuly 19 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey1 / 4Spain’s forward #19 Lamine Yamal warms up ahead of the 2026 World Cup football tournament semi-final match between France and Spain at the Dallas Stadium in Arlington on July 14, 2026.(PAUL ELLIS, AFP via Getty Images)This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: William Saliba injury update: What we know after France defender subbed off vs. Spain