Brazil legend Marcelo has picked Spain to beat holders Argentina in the 2026 FIFA World Cup final on Sunday (July 19) at New York New Jersey Stadium, East Rutherford.

La Roja have had fabulous campaign, winining their last six matches, conceding once - a 2-1 quarte-final win over Belgium. Meanwhile, the Albiceleste have taken a more circuitous route to the final, not keeping a clean sheet in five games and needing extra time in two of their four knockout games.

Luis de la Fuente's side blanked two-time winners France 2-0 in the last-four, with Mikel Oyarzabal and Pedro Porro scoring either side of the interval. Meanwhile, the holders came within five minutes of defeat against England before scoring twice in seven minutes to go through with a 2-1 win.

Ahead of the title clash this weekend, former Real Madrid left-back Marcelo explained why he thins La Roja will reign supreme (as per CBS Sports Golazo):

La Roja are looking to emulate Uruguay and Italy as the only teams to win their first two FIFA World Cup finals, having first done so in South Africa in 2010 with an extra time victory over the Netherlands.

Meanwhile, the Albiceleste - on a record 13-game winning streak - are looking to become the first defending champions in 64 years to go back-to-back at the quadrennial event.

Argentina captain Lionel Messi surged to the top of the 2026 FIFA World Cup Golden Boot leaderboard with his twin assists in the semi-final win over England in Atlanta in midweek.

The 39-year-old leads the rest of the pack with eight goals and four assists in seven games, one ahead of France captain Kylian Mbappe, who has the same number of goals as Messi but one assist fewer.

Messi finished runner-up to Mbappe (8) in the Golden Boot standings in the last edition in Qatar 2022, scoring one goal fewer. Can the Argentine add the one missing individual accolade to his resume when he plays Spain this weekend, while Mbappe plays England a day before in Miami in the third-place play-off?

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