As usual, when Spain became world champions after the final victory over Argentina 1-0, people turned their eyes to them to find the winning formula. But perhaps, experts do not have to spend too much effort researching, because in fact, they still operate with the old formula. It's just that coach Luis de la Fuente adjusted a few details when the current squad does not have as many top names as in the previous period.
Historic reversal
Let's go back in history a bit, before entering the 21st century, all that the Spanish national team has done is the European championship in 1964 and the runner-up in 1984. At the World Cup, their limit is the quarter-finals. But in the 21st century - actually just over 20 years, they have 2 world championships (2010, 2026), 3 European titles (2008, 2012, 2024).
Opening the Wiki page about the team from the upper half of the Iberian Peninsula, you will see 2 nicknames of theirs. One is La Furia Roja (Red Fury), two is La Roja (no longer Furia - anger, anymore). Because before the 80s, Spanish football was famous for its touchy, physically rich style of play, but very little success.
Later, in 2004, the late coach Cesar Luis Menotti, who led Argentina to their first World Cup title in 1978, once said that Spanish football, after a long time playing below par in the international arena, needs to "forget the anger and decide whether to be a bullfighter or a bull".
That caused outrage among Spanish fans. But, in the land of bullfighting, a person born only a few months before Menotti - Luis Aragones, seemed to have understood and created a change after succeeding Inaki Saez,
The Spanish national team was eliminated right from the group stage of EURO 2004.
Realizing that Spanish players cannot compete physically with Germans or Englishmen, he declared: "I have small players, but they know how to play football". Aragones laid the foundation for the El Toque (short ball, control) philosophy that helped Spain win EURO 2008.
Philosophy and Evolution
Knowing how to play football", remember this, because it is the philosophy of Spanish football. They have many excellent players in skills, in the training system of the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) and top training academies (La Masia, La Fabrica, Lezama...), playing football thinking is the ultimate goal, while skills are just tools.
Spanish players are taught the formula "Look - Recognize - Decide - Act" from the age of 6-8. Before the ball reaches their feet, players must observe the surrounding space (scan the pitch) 3 to 5 times. Good ball control skills are not for "performance", but to save 0.5 seconds for making the next decision.
In Spanish football culture, the concepts of Espacio (Space) and Tiempo (Time) are 2 guiding principles. Players learn to create space for teammates with ball-free movements (location of the body, pulling people) more than holding the ball and crashing straight into the opponent.
And Rondo - or "ghost kick" - is famous not only for short passing/touching skills exercises. Rondo's nature is to miniature simulate the match, thereby learning how to maintain formation distance, recognize gaps, react quickly under pressure and change states immediately when losing/having the ball.
When Vicente del Bosque and Pep Guardiola were both successful in the national team and Barcelona club, many said it was because they had the Golden Generation in hand. From there, they easily elevated controlled football to an art called Juego de Posición (Position Football). In this period, controlling the ball is not only for attack but also the best defensive method: "When we hold the ball, the opponent cannot score".
Those who believe in the success of La Roja thanks to the Golden Generation are even more grounded when followed by failures in 3 World Cups 2014, 2018, 2022 and EURO 2016. EURO 2020, although in the semi-finals, the journey was very arduous. However, Luis de la Fuente, with adjustments since 2022 - after the team's failure at the World Cup with Luis Enrique, Spain was installed with a completely different operating system: Directness, extremely high pressing intensity and personal freedom.
Still with the triangular structure - players always move to form countless triangles or diamonds around the ball holder, dividing the space - the field is divided into 18 - 20 small flag cells, and the backbone with the classic number 6 - not the "muscle guy" sweeping, but the heart and brain of the team, to regulate the pace, attract the opponent's pressing and circulate the ball to empty spaces, Spain has "advanced" to 2 EURO 2024 and World Cup 2026 championships without needing a star-studded squad full of big names.
As Toni Kroos wrote very simply after the 2026 World Cup final: "Football has won", that is the story of continuous thinking creating identity and adaptation to the times, not winning with anger. Now the world is looking for a solution to the "Spanish problem".
