Spain v Saudi Arabia: 2026 World Cup Prediction

Alongside Portugal’s draw against the DR Congo, the draw between Spain and Cape Verde is the biggest surprise of the 2026 World Cup. La Furia Roja have faced a fair bit of criticism at home and are hoping to quickly wash away the bitter aftertaste of this goalless draw. They are, of course, hoping that Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams will be able to start against Saudi Arabia. Read more here about the second match of one of the World Cup favourites, including our Spain v Saudi Arabia prediction.

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Spain v Saudi Arabia preview

Saudi Arabia are undoubtedly sensing an opportunity. Given their 2-1 victory over Argentina at the 2022 World Cup and their draw against Uruguay, we cannot rule out the possibility that the Saudis will achieve another good result. On the other hand, Spain remain arguably the best team at the World Cup. Read on to find out more about both sides.

Current Form & Team News

Spain

It’s clear that Spain were the better side against Cape Verde. It’s no surprise that Luis de la Fuente’s side had a total of 27 shots, seven of which were on target. What was particularly striking was that there was virtually no threat from the flanks. That was until Lamine Yamal came on as a substitute and made life just that little bit harder for Cape Verde’s defence. Will he start this match? And if so, will he make an immediate impact? The fact remains that, since mid-April, he has only played a total of 25 minutes.

Saudi Arabia

Things are on a knife-edge for Saudi Arabia. At the 2022 World Cup, under the guidance of Hervé Renard, they pulled off a miracle by beating Argentina. And to think that, just a month later, the Argentines were on the verge of winning the World Cup. Nevertheless, Saudi Arabia were still knocked out after this legendary victory, having lost their other two group matches. This is something they will undoubtedly want to avoid, and so they will likely sit very deep. And perhaps it will be another moment of inspiration from Abdulelah Al Amri, the Al-Nassr defender who scored against Uruguay.

Head-to-Head

Spain and Saudi Arabia have played three official international matches against each other in the past. The first encounter was at the 2026 World Cup, when the Spaniards won 1-0 in Germany. This was followed by two friendlies, which they won 3-2 and 5-0 respectively. In short: three meetings, three wins for Spain. Is a fourth consecutive victory on the cards?

Expected line-ups

Spain (4-3-3)

Simon, Cucurella, Laporte, Cubarsi, Llorente, Rodri, Gavi, Pedri, Williams, Oyarzabal, Yamal

Saudi Arabia (4-3-3)

Al Aqidi, Al Harbi, Al Amri, Al Tambakti, Abdulhami, Kanno, Al Juwayr, A. Al Dawsari, S. Al Dawsari, Al Buraikan, Al Ghannam

Spain v Saudi Arabia Betting Tips

Betting Tip 1: Over 0.5 shots on target – Pedri

One of Spain’s best players is, of course, Pedri. The FC Barcelona midfielder is a guaranteed starter and came close to scoring on several occasions against Cape Verde. He did, in fact, have one shot on target against Cape Verde. We believe Spain will be the dominant side and will have another shot on target. On target, that is. If Pedri has more than 0.5 shots on target, this will earn you odds of 1.80 at Oranje Palace.

Betting tip 2: Both teams to score – YES

We get the impression that Spain are still somewhat vulnerable. For instance, they’ve drawn three of their last four matches. These were against Egypt, Iraq and Cape Verde – not exactly top-tier sides. We think they’ll certainly win, but we reckon Saudi Arabia will still manage to score a goal. Both teams to score – YES gives you odds of 2.85 at Oranje Palace.

Spain v Saudi Arabia Prediction

** Final score: Spain – Saudi Arabia 3–1 **
We believe Spain will bounce back from their lacklustre performance against Spain. Especially with the two wingers likely to return to the starting line-up. However, as we feel Spain’s defence looks somewhat vulnerable, we’re predicting at least one goal for the Saudis.