Last time Spain won the World Cup: Revisiting 2010 FIFA final featuring 14 yellow cards

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Last time Spain won the World Cup: Revisiting 2010 FIFA final featuring 14 yellow cards originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

As Spain looks for its second World Cup title on Sunday, it will be hard to beat the first time that La Roja won the tournament.

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In 2010, Spain used its defense and timely goals to win six straight matches, five of which were clean sheets, to win the World Cup for the first time. As a result, Spain became the eighth country ever to win a World Cup and is still the newest member of the World Cup champions list.

This Spanish team was led by stars like David Villa, Xavi, Xabi Alonso and Fernando Torres as the squad came out victorious in South Africa. Here's a look back at Spain's first-ever World Cup title.

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Last time Spain won the World Cup

Spain's only World Cup title came in South Africa in 2010, when the team used a stifling defense to cap off an impressive performance throughout the tournament. In the final match, Spain defeated the Netherlands for its fourth straight 1-0 win in the knockout stage.

The Netherlands also entered that match with a strong defense, having allowed multiple goals in a match just once throughout the entire tournament. As the match was the Final, it got chippy and included 14 yellow cards overall, eight coming from the Dutch as both teams struggled to score.

The match was tied at 0-0 for much of the time, with Spain and the Netherlands needing extra time to decide the final. While the Netherlands' eight yellows were notable, a game-changing moment came in the 109th minute as John Heitinga received his second yellow of the game. That meant Heitinga received a red card and was disqualified, leaving the Netherlands with 10 players for the final 11 minutes.

Spain finally broke through in the 116th minute, as Andres Iniesta buried the first and only goal of the match.

Despite the tight score, Spain was the better team this match with 57 percent possession and a 19-13 shot advantage. The Netherlands, along with eight yellow cards, had 28 fouls to Spain's 13 for the match.

Spanish goalie Iker Casillas concluded his World Cup with five saves in another shutout, allowing just two goals and collecting five clean sheets in seven matches. The entire run, though, belonged to David Villa, who scored five of Spain's eight goals including three different game-winners.

2010 Spain World Cup roster

PlayerPositionDavid VillaForwardPedroForwardFernando LlorenteForwardAlvaro NegredoForwardRoberto SoldadoForwardFernando TorresMidfieldXaviMidfieldXabi AlonsoMidfieldAndres IniestaMidfieldCesc FabregasMidfieldJuan MataMidfieldSergio BusquetsMidfieldDavid SilvaMidfieldJavi MartinezMidfieldSanti CazorlaMidfieldPablo HernandezMidfieldGerard PiqueDefenseCarles PuyolDefenseJoan CapdevillaDefenseSergio RamosDefenseJesus NavasDefenseCarlos MarchenaDefenseRaul AlbiolDefenseArdoni IraolaDefenseAlvaro ArbeolaDefenseNacho MonrealDefenseIker CasillasGoalieVictor ValdesGoaliePepe ReinaGoalieDavid de GeaGoalieDiego LopezGoalie

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2010 Spain World Cup run

Group stage: Switzerland 1, Spain 0

Spain actually opened its World Cup title run with a loss against Switzerland in the group stage. Gelson Fernandes scored the only goal of the match in the 52nd minute, and even though Spain controlled possession for almost two-thirds of the match, the team couldn't break through.

Group stage: Spain 2, Honduras 0

La Roja got back on track in the next group stage match against Honduras with a 2-0 victory to put itself in position to make the knockout stage. David Vila scored Spain's first goal of the tournament in the 17th minute of this match, and he added another score for a brace in the 51st minute. For the second-straight match, Spain avoided a yellow card, all while controlling possession and holding Honduras without a shot on goal.

Group stage: Spain 2, Chile 1

Spain secured the top spot in its group with a 2-1 win over Chile, who entered the match undefeated and in great position already to join the knockout stage. Villa broke the ice again with a goal in the 24th minute, while Andres Iniesta added a score in the 37th minute. Spain did allow a Chile goal in the second half, but La Roja controlled possession and avoided yellow cards once again to fend off Chile's attack.

Round of 16: Spain 1, Portugal 0

Spain's first knockout stage match came against rival Portugal as the two teams renewed the Iberian Derby. To no surprise, David Villa was the hero with the match's only goal in the 63rd minute as Spain held Portugal scoreless. Spain secured seven more shots-on-goal and 10 more shots overall compared to Portugal, while also holding almost two-thirds of possession.

Quarterfinal: Spain 1, Paraguay 0

This quarterfinal match played out similar to the round of 16 match, as Spain beat Paraguay 1-0 on a late Villa goal. This time, Villa scored in the 85th minute of the match to break the scoreless tie over a Paraguay team that played with a lot of physicality. Spain still dominated the possession battle, but found it tougher to score than in the previous few matches.

Semifinal: Spain 1, Germany 0

This match marked Spain's first appearance in a World Cup semifinal, and it came against powerhouse Germany. In what was perhaps Spain's toughest match of the entire tournament, the possession battle was pretty much even, though Spain had the shots advantage. This time, though, it was Carlos Puyol who scored the game-winner by heading in a corner kick in one of Spain's most iconic moments of the entire run.

Final: Spain 1, Netherlands 0

Spain took on the Netherlands in a battle for teams in search of their first World Cup title. The physical match went to extra time tied at 0-0, but Iniesta scored a late goal while Spain was up a man to secure the title. The win marked Spain's fourth-straight 1-0 win and fifth clean sheet in seven games.

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