Arlington, Texas - Spain ended France's dream of reaching a third consecutive World Cup final on Tuesday, taking home a roaring 2–0 victory to face off against England or Argentina on Sunday.

Didier Deschamps' men were hot favorites to lift the trophy after a string of breathtaking attacking displays in the US, but they met their match against the slick European champions in the semifinals.

Mikel Oyarzabal opened the scoring for the 2010 winners with an emphatic penalty in the first half in Arlington, Texas, and Pedro Porro doubled their lead in the second half.

Shell-shocked France could not find a way back into the match despite their wealth of attacking riches on a bitterly disappointing day for the two-time winners.

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"We started almost four years ago with an idea and we've been faithful to that idea and it's brought us here," said Spain coach Luis de la Fuente.

"These players deserve everything," he added. "Day after day they've shown their commitment, their solidarity, their generosity, their talent. They make the difficult look easy."

The game at the AT&T Stadium caught fire midway through the first half when Salvadoran referee Ivan Barton pointed to the penalty spot after a reckless challenge by France left-back Lucas Digne on Spain winger Lamine Yamal.

Oyarzabal hammered the ball past France goalkeeper Mike Maignan for his fifth goal of the World Cup to leave France trailing for the first time in the tournament.

Deschamps threw on Desire Doue for Bradley Barcola in the 57th minute in a bid to supercharge his attack but a minute later they were 2–0 down after a stunning team goal for Spain involving Dani Olmo and defender Porro.

Spain, who have conceded just once in the entire tournament, have now gone 37 games without defeat in all competitions, making soccer history.