World Cup 2026 Semifinals: Four Giants, Two Nights
The quarterfinals delivered, and now the 2026 FIFA World Cup is down to four heavyweights. France put Morocco away 2–0, Spain edged Belgium 2–1, England needed extra time to break Norway 2–1, and holders Argentina swept past Switzerland 3–1. The reward: France vs Spain in Dallas tonight, and England vs Argentina in Atlanta tomorrow. Two fixtures, about a century and a half of combined football history — and, the moment each final whistle goes, millions of phone calls in four dialing codes. Here is what to watch, when to watch it, and how to call home cheaply afterwards.
France vs Spain: Europe's heavyweight bout
The first semifinal is a rerun of the Euro 2024 semifinal, which Spain won 2–1 on their way to the title. These two have been trading landmark matches for four decades: the 1984 European Championship final (France), the 2006 World Cup round of 16 (France, 3–1), the Euro 2012 quarterfinal (Spain), the 2021 Nations League final (France). La Roja arrive as reigning European champions chasing a second World Cup after 2010; Les Bleus, champions in 1998 and 2018 and finalists in 2022, are one win from a fourth final in eight years. It is the first time the neighbours meet at a World Cup since 2006 — and the winner will start the final as favourite.
England vs Argentina: football's oldest grudge match
The second semifinal needs no introduction on either side of the Atlantic. England vs Argentina is the rivalry of the Hand of God and the Goal of the Century in 1986, of Beckham's red card in 1998 and his penalty redemption in 2002. Argentina, world champions in 1978, 1986 and 2022, are defending their crown; England are still chasing a second star to go with 1966 — the year they beat Argentina in a stormy quarterfinal on the way to their only title. This is the first World Cup meeting between the two since 2002, and the first ever in a semifinal.
Four countries, four codes
Wherever you're watching from, someone you love is watching in another country. The codes, briefly — and the live per-minute rates behind each link:
- France, +33. Ten digits at home, drop the leading 0 internationally: a Paris landline is
+33 1 44 45 67 89, mobiles start with 6 or 7. Rates on the France page. - Spain, +34. Nine digits, no leading zero to drop — dial them all, from anywhere. Madrid landlines start with 91, Barcelona 93; mobiles with 6 or 7. Rates on the Spain page.
- England, +44. Domestic numbers start with 0, dropped internationally: a London landline is
+44 20 1234 5678, mobiles start with 7. Rates on the United Kingdom page. - Argentina, +54. The famous quirk: calling an Argentine mobile from abroad, add a 9 after the country code —
+54 9 11 1234 5678for a Buenos Aires mobile (11 is the capital's area code). Landlines skip the 9. Rates on the Argentina page.
Calls from the eFon app to any mobile or landline in all four countries cost a clear per-minute rate — up to 90% less than dialling directly on a mobile-operator plan — and the person you call just answers a normal call, no app needed on their side.
Kickoff in your time zone
After the late-night quarterfinals, Europe finally gets a civilised hour: both semifinals kick off mid-afternoon in the USA, which lands at 9 p.m. in Madrid and Paris and 8 p.m. in London — prime time. In Buenos Aires it is a 4 p.m. match, straight after the long Argentine lunch. The post-match calls will cross the two semifinals too: hundreds of thousands of Britons live in Spain, and Spain is home to the largest Argentine community in Europe — whatever happens, somebody's household will be split down the middle.
And if you're among the lucky ones inside AT&T Stadium or Mercedes-Benz Stadium: eFon's travel eSIM keeps your data working in the USA without roaming surprises, and the app keeps every call home cheap from any network.
How they got here
We covered all four quarterfinals as they happened:
- France vs Morocco: the World Cup rematch
- Spain vs Belgium: a 40-year World Cup rematch
- Norway vs England: a quarterfinal for history
- Argentina vs Switzerland: holders vs history
Four giants, two nights, one trophy. Whoever reaches the final on July 19, the phones will be busy — make your calls with eFon, and may the best teams win. ⚽