Spain just did something no men’s national team has ever done at a World Cup: keep six consecutive clean sheets. That’s six straight matches where the opposing team walked off the pitch without putting the ball in the net.
Goalkeeper Unai Simón has been the brick wall behind the achievement, racking up over 519 minutes without conceding a goal. That surpasses the previous record held by Italy’s Walter Zenga, which had stood for more than three decades.
A defensive masterclass in the making
Spain entered the 2026 FIFA World Cup as a strong contender, and the defensive numbers have backed up the hype. The team remains unbeaten in their opening matches, with their clean sheet streak placing them in rare company among nations that have maintained such dominance at the tournament level.
For historical comparison, Switzerland managed an impressive run of clean sheets spanning the 2006 to 2010 World Cups. Italy’s Zenga set the standard in 1990. Spain has now leapfrogged both, establishing a new benchmark that future generations will have to chase.
