Quote · The Bill Simmons Podcast
Spain Prevails, World Cup Winners and Losers, and Damon Vs. Leo With Chris Ryan and Anthony Dabbundo
Where this was said
World Cup Final reactions
At 10:36 · chapter starts 1:14
The trio opens with big-picture reactions to Spain's World Cup Final victory, with Chris Ryan immediately framing it as 'ethical football' — the best team won the game it deserved to win. Anthony Dabbundo lands the episode's most stunning statistic: Argentina had zero shots on goal for 117 minutes and only one touch inside Spain's 18-yard box for over an hour [1] — Anthony Dabbundo "Argentina: 0 shots on goal for 117 mins: Argentina had zero shots on goal for 117 minutes of the World Cup Final, and only one touch inside…" 02:10 . Bill Simmons, watching with his son, notes the first half was a showcase for everything casual fans dislike about soccer, while the second half revealed Argentina's true 'rollerball' identity — cynical fouls, fake dives, and manufacturing calls. Chris Ryan compares Argentina's approach to the OKC Thunder, pushing referees to the absolute limit of what they'll tolerate. The panel also dwells on England's catastrophic semifinal loss and the torture of watching them turtle with a 1-0 lead, with Bill observing England 'evacuated the game like they evacuated America in the 1770s.' Anthony reveals Spain held a record 2.3 expected goals conceded across 8 games, demolishing Brazil's 1994 benchmark [2] — Anthony Dabbundo "Spain xG conceded: 2.3 in 8 games: Spain conceded only 2.3 expected goals across their entire 2026 World Cup run of 8 games, shattering Bra…" 12:49 , while all three marvel at Messi still being the player every opponent has to build a game plan around at 39.
Argentina pitched a no-hitter for 117 minutes of the World Cup Final — zero shots on goal and only one touch inside Spain's box for over an hour. The scoreline of 1-0 made it look competitive. It wasn't.
Argentina had zero shots on goal for 117 minutes of the World Cup Final, and only one touch inside Spain's 18-yard box for over 65 minutes.
Argentina have mastered the dark arts of elite-level gamesmanship — diving, fouling just inside the yellow-card limit, and manufacturing calls at crucial moments. Chris Ryan compared it directly to OKC Thunder's referee pressure tactics: it's a legitimate skill.
Spain's center back Pau Cubarsi was just 19 years old during the 2026 World Cup and is already considered one of the best passers in the world at his position.
England scored 6 goals against France in the meaningless third-place match — the same squad that couldn't break down Argentina in the semifinal while leading 1-0.
Spain had lost their last 4 major tournament shootouts — to Russia (2018), Italy (2021 Euros), Morocco (2022), and Portugal (Nations League) — before winning the 2026 final without needing penalties.
